


Xeranthemum Immortelle

by ElfGrove



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, M/M, New Gods AU, Reincarnation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-20
Updated: 2017-10-20
Packaged: 2018-04-27 08:05:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 170
Words: 32,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5040601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElfGrove/pseuds/ElfGrove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>New Gods AU -- When the world was new, Ouranos and Gaia ruled over all of existence. When the Titans rose up and destroyed Ouranos, they became gods, the new rulers of the cosmos, led by the Titan Kronos. Later, Kronos' children rose up against him. Once Kronos was destroyed, his children, led by Zeus and known as the Olympians, became the gods that ruled over the cosmos. In the modern days, the children of the Olympians rose up and destroyed the Titans a second time, and then destroyed the primordial goddess Gaea soon after, saving their world and achieving what their godly parents could not.</p><p>When you destroy primordial gods and prevent a cataclysm, there really ought to be equally cosmic sorts of consequences. It's really only natural that the power to rule the cosmos would cycle again to the newest victors.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Xeranthemum

**Author's Note:**

> The goal is a series of loosely connected drabble (100 to 500~ish words) snippets to tell a longer story whenever I have the time and inclination to add to it.

The plant that produces the Xeranthemum flower grows to two feet tall and only blooms once a year with flowers that range from white to pink to purple. The flower itself has a few meanings: cheerfulness under adversity, unfading remembrance, everlasting love, and immortality. A Greek superstition is that if perfume is made out Xeranthemum, especially the pink flowers, it can be used as a love potion. If a person wanted to attract someone but had encountered rejection in the past, then the advice was for them to wrap their hands with the raw pink flowers from the Xeranthemum plant, and shake the desired person’s hand. This person would then fall in love with them. The flower was even believed to possess powers that would bring back home a lover who had run away.

Jason Grace twirled the long stem between his fingers as he stared out over the Washington D.C. skyline from the hotel suite’s balcony. These flowers weren’t very common these days. They gave too little yield for most gardeners to bother with them, and the dye color they’d once been famed for was easily reproduced with chemicals and less effort. That the Aurae had brought him this could only mean one thing: his lover had returned.


	2. Missing Gods

Everything had changed after the War with Gaea, although it had taken a few years to fully realize it. The demigods hadn’t been surprised to hear less and less from their godly parents. After two great prophecies and two wars that nearly ended life as they knew it, it seemed reasonable that the Olympians were keeping their promise to meddle less with mortal affairs for a little while. If anything, it was more of a relief than a source of concern. It did seem stranger when they noticed fewer and fewer demigods showing up at the camps though. People were no longer being claimed again, and none of the new demigods being found were young enough to have been born after the mess with Gaea. Even those that had been born in the space between the Titans and Gaea were strangely few. The Twelve Olympians may have been busy, but many of the minor gods had gone about business as usual in that time. Percy and a delegation from Camp Half-Blood had eventually gone to complain about the unclaimed demigod children and the broken promise. However, when they arrived there was no longer an entrance to Olympus at the Empire State building. The Olympians seemed to have simply disappeared.


	3. We're Not Aging

The next clue that something was strange was the lack of aging. That took even longer to notice. It wasn’t everyone, of course not, there were too many demigods for it to be all of them, but The Seven? They had stopped aging.

He could still remember Nico finally commenting on it, almost four years after the War with Gaea. Nico had shot up taller than he and Percy both, and he had laughed it off, saying it was a delayed growth spurt because of the lack of proper nutrition. Percy and Annabeth had scowled at even the lighthearted jab at Nico’s mistreatment in those early years, and Nico had dropped the subject, not wanting to cause a fight. If Jason was honest with himself, there was a small part of him that had purposely poked at that old wound to avoid talking about it.

He couldn’t keep ignoring it in the years that followed though, the way he never got so much as laugh lines around the eyes while Nico was clearly growing up. By then, it was too difficult a subject for him to broach. Nico was aging, and he wasn’t. They were still young and the signs of getting older were subtle, so it didn’t matter much, but it would eventually. It would become an untraversable divide, and he suspected they both knew it.


	4. Power Surge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Taking a level in bad ass

Their powers grew too. At first he had hoped it was just part of being a maturing demigod, but when a minor fight with his boyfriend resulted in a hurricane flooding half of New York City, he knew he couldn’t keep ignoring things.

Nico called him on the land line at the apartment they shared.

“Hello?”

There was a frustrated exhale of breath on the other end of the connection, “I’m not going to make it back home tonight.”

He’d grit his teeth, not wanting to continue the argument. _It hadn’t been that big a deal, had it?_ “You’re still **_that_** mad at me?”

“No,” Nico’s voice wasn’t as full of conviction as he had wished for. “You haven’t looked at the news, have you? I can’t come back. They’re evacuating a large section of the city. There’s a hurricane making landfall in a few hours.”

“I won’t let a hurricane damage the apartment, Neeks. Please come home.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to Shadow Travel right now.  I’m staying in New Jersey with Dare for tonight.”

“I’m really sorry.”

“Jay, you didn’t,” His word trailed off. “I’ll come home as soon as they lift the evacuation order. We’ll talk, okay?”

He couldn’t curb the hurt in his voice, “Okay.”

“Love you. Stay safe.”

All of The Seven had seen drastic changes in their powers. It went beyond demigod talents and was venturing into godly. Combined with the absence of the gods, the conclusion was becoming harder to ignore. It had been Annabeth (of course it had) who had finally pointed out that by defeating the Titans and then Gaea, they had done the same thing their parents had in order to become the ruling gods. They were the new gods, or were in the process of becoming them. Their power wasn’t as omnipotent as the Olympians yet, but it was getting there.


	5. Underworld: No Admittance

“I can’t reach the Underworld anymore,” Nico sat next to him at a New York cafe with a concerned expression, running a hand through unruly black curls.

“I didn’t realize you were still going down there. You said you hadn’t seen your Father there for a couple of years.”

“I haven’t.” Nico squeezed his eyes shut and swallowed a lump in his throat. “Some of the minor gods are-- were still there though. They listened to me, and I knew most of what my Father used to do to run things.”

Jason reached out and put a reassuring hand over Nico’s. “It’s not your job to run the Underworld, Neeks.”

“I thought if I tried hard enough, it might be.” _Nico’s voice sounded hollow, defeated in a way it hadn’t since all those years ago in Croatia._

“I don’t want you spending all your time in the Underworld. You should be up here. With people. People who care about and love you.” He tightened his fingers over Nico’s. “With me.”

“I do want to stay with you. That’s why I was hoping… I don’t know. I should have known I wouldn’t be good enough.”

“What are you talking about?” Thunder rumbled in the distance, and Jason fought to reign in his emotions. “You’re more than good enough to be anything you want to be.”

“Not a god though.” Nico finally met his eyes then, and he understood exactly why he was so upset. “I won’t be able to stay with you.”

He grit his teeth as he set his jaw and squeezed Nico’s hand reassuringly, “I don’t plan on letting you go.”


	6. Centuries

_How long ago had that conversation been?_

_At least two centuries. Probably three. Definitely less than five._

He’d grown into his powers, his place, as the new king of the gods since then. As the trio who had dealt the final blow to defeat Gaea, he, Piper, and Leo were the new “Big Three”. Leo coming back had been a happy surprise, and Calypso stayed by his side a goddess in her own right these days.

Octavian had been reborn and rewarded in his own way. He now ran the Underworld, and he was both prideful of his position and hated his lot as a god. Jason couldn’t look at him without thinking of the long dead Greek demigod who had wanted and worked for the place Octavian sneered at.

Maybe they weren’t that different from Jupiter and Pluto themselves in the long run. He even had his own demigod children now. They were few, and he tried to ensure they had better lives than what he and his friends had experienced growing up. If he was to become as callous as Jupiter (Zeus) one day, it would be many more centuries in the making.


	7. How I Lost Him

Jason still remembered the feel of Nico’s hands on his, and the brush of unruly black curls against his skin. He still missed it.

After he’d started to really get to know Nico, he’d spent every day of the most difficult quest of his demigod life praying for the Italian’s safety. It wasn’t that much of a surprise when the two had started dating almost two years after Gaea’s defeat.

They had split for a couple of years when Jason’s lack of aging had made it too difficult for either of them to face a future together, and they had gotten together again after Jason learned to alter his appearance to whatever age he wished. They had stayed together for decades after that. Nico slowly growing older, getting gray hairs and olive skin collecting a few wrinkles, but still beside him.

Until mortality came knocking.

Nico had made him leave in the last months before he died, cancer of all the damnable things, saying he couldn’t deal with Jason being there, that he didn’t want those to be Jason’s last memories of him when he was going to live so long. Jason had felt it when Nico had finally died, and would have chased his soul into the Underworld, except it was still closed to all but the dead. No one had known then that Octavian had risen to power and was still trying to figure out his own godly new life.


	8. Blame

Centuries later, Jason had still never loved again as strongly as he had felt for Nico. He cursed that he hadn’t grown into his powers fast enough to be able to grant his mortal love immortality the way Zeus had done for Ganymede. He kept changing his mind on whether to blame himself for not growing into his new powers fast enough or blaming whatever fate that had chosen him not also choosing Nico.

Nico had more than earned a place among the new gods, and yet both he and Reyna had been left out. It was unfair.

Jason leaned forward on the patio table in a cafe in Washington D.C., watching a lean young man at another table juggle books and a backpack as he sat down and nodded at the waiter who asked if he wanted “the usual.”


	9. First Words

He still had those beautiful black curls Jason loved to run his fingers through. Jason bit his lower lip trying to suppress the grin that spread across his features, and in the end he brought his hand up to cover his mouth and lean his chin on as he watched the young man settle into his spot.

The man glanced up at him three times before finally huffing out a breath and fixing him with a dark eyed glare, “What are you staring at?”

“You,” He could practically feel his eyes dancing with mirth. “The reincarnation cycle takes so long. You can’t imagine how happy I am to see you again.”

A blush spread across olive-toned cheeks and he could see the man who both was and was not Nico sputter as he tried to form a response.


	10. Pick-Up Line

“Does that line actually work on people?”

“It’s not a line,” He couldn’t help it, his grin widened behind his hand. “I’m just excited.”

“Listen.” The dark brown eyes narrowed at him in challenge. _It was so familiar, and so distant a memory that it was difficult to stay put._ “I’m flattered and all, but just because I’m in this neighborhood doesn’t automatically mean I’m into other men.”

Jason raised an eyebrow then let his hand drop, grin not wavering as he rose to his feet and began crossing the distance between their tables. With each step, he altered an aspect of his form. Once upon a time he had changed his age to match Nico’s comfort level. What was gender but another aspect of form? It wasn’t as if he’d never tried out being female before.

“I’m flexible.”


	11. Not A Demi-God

The blood drained from not-Nico’s face, and his jaw dropped open as he leaned back in his chair, away from Jason, looking nervous. “You’re one of them. One of the demigods.”

“Close, but no cigar.” He stood next to the man’s chair now, looking down at him and restraining the urge to touch. It wasn’t easy. After more than two hundred years, all he wanted to do was sweep him into his arms again and run fingers through his hair.

Not-Nico closed his mouth and swallowed hard, adam’s apple bobbing against the long line of his throat. When he spoke, his voice was raw and hesitant, “Then, you’re one of the new gods?”


	12. Grace

Jason’s grin widened just enough to show teeth. “Bingo.”

“Which one are you?”

“Guess.”

The young man gripped the sides of his chair to steady himself, still looking up at Jason with wide brown eyes that seemed to expect him to swoop down and devour him. _Maybe he should live up to that expectation... The old Nico would have hit him for even considering that._

“You’re blonde, but I’m betting not Chase.” His voice was hesitant, still nervous, so Jason nodded encouragingly. The young man bit his lower lip, eyes searching Jason’s face and locking onto the sky blue eyes. “You can’t be... Grace?”

“Bingo again.” Jason brushed a few inky strands of hair back and pressed a light kiss to the man’s forehead. When he pulled back, he let his smile soften, becoming more serious. “I’ve waited a long time to see you once more.”


	13. Overwhelmed

_The young man looked starstruck. Maybe overwhelmed was a better word._

“I think you’ve got the wrong person. I’m just a regular guy.” He turned his face away, and started shuffling the papers he’d laid out on the table. “I’m just trying to work on my thesis for school, and while it’s really, really flattering that you’re interested, I haven’t got the time or the interest to get tangled up with a god. Definitely not the king of the gods.”

“You’re trying to brush me off,” Jason chuckled.

“Now you catch on,” He huffed in an irritated tone, then glanced up in panic. “Please don’t be offended. I just don’t have time for or interest in romance. That’s all.”


	14. Fling

Jason wasn’t offended. He hadn’t really expected he could just waltz into this new life of Nico’s and sweep him off his feet, not that it hadn’t been worth a try. It had taken time and effort to earn Nico’s love centuries ago, and he didn’t expect to not have to earn it again now. _It was just hard to fight the instinct to act as though no time had passed._

“Then the bit about not being into other men?”

Red dusted the man’s cheeks again, and he went back to glaring at his papers, “A lie. Not that it matters. I still don’t want to be part of some celestial fling.”


	15. Patient

“I can be patient.” Jason shifted back to his usual form, an adult version of himself in his late twenties as he would have been had he grown normally, wearing a tailored blue suit. “I’ve waited for you to be reborn. I can wait until you have time.”

“Would you stop saying that!?” The man glared up at him, dark eyes flashing and blush deepening when he saw that Jason was back to his usual self. “I don’t know who you think I am, but I’m not that person! I’m just me!”

“I don’t make mistakes. I know you. I always would.”


	16. Just A Name

“Tartarus,” The man cursed, and started shoving books into his bag. “You’d think I was that demigod lover of yours, The Angel or whatever, the way you’re acting. Who names their kid ‘The Angel’ anyways? Seems like a great way to get teased your entire life.”

“Di Angelo,” Jason corrected gently. “That was Nico’s surname, not his first name. They use everyone’s surnames when they’re telling the stories to make us sound less human. For example, I’m Jason, not just ‘Grace’.”

“Of course,” The young man seemed more frustrated now. “Well, just because my name’s Nico doesn’t mean I’m your lover reincarnated, okay? My Mother is an anthropologist who studies all the New Gods stuff. She probably knew and thought it would be romantic to name me that.”


	17. Nico

Jason could feel the way his face lit up at that bit of news, “Your name is Nico?”

He froze, looking back into Jason’s eyes. “You didn’t already know that?”

“No,” He forced his expression to become gentle again instead of the excited puppy he felt like, “I told you. I just know it’s you. I can’t mistake that.”

The man looked away again, busying himself with the backpack. If Jason hadn’t been hanging onto his every action, he might have missed the muttered question, “Why me?”

“Because you are that Nico. _My Nico._ ”

He shouldered his backpack and rose from his chair swiftly, jerking away from Jason as he did so. "No I’m not! Stop saying that!”


	18. Watch

He hadn’t followed when Nico left the café. _He didn’t need to. He’d found him. Nico had finally been reborn, and he had found him._

An Aurae partially materialized next to him as he watched the young man cross the street, a barely visible cloud of mist shaped like a woman with a puff of curly hair floating around an indistinct face.

“My Lord, should we..?”

“Keep watching. I don’t want to lose track of him. Notify me immediately if anything unusual happens.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

The Aurae faded out of visibility again, and he knew he could trust the wind spirits working in tandem to ensure that at least one of the elementals of his domain would know Nico’s whereabouts at all times. _Things had changed in the last couple of centuries. He didn’t need to fear Nico’s mortality, only his acceptance._

_He would not lose him again._


	19. Jason's Guest

“What in Olympus’s name are you doing in DC?”

Jason looked back from his seat on the balcony to see the young-looking woman with dark skin who had materialized in the main room of the hotel suite. He smiled warmly and gestured to the seat across from him with the empty wine glass and open wine bottle that waited for her to join him next to a vase of pink flowers.

“Appreciating the view.”

Her hair looked warm as she stepped into the sunlight, a reddish brown shade close to cinnamon threaded with gold to match her eyes. Eyes that narrowed at him and his own half empty glass of wine suspiciously as she sat.

“Well, don’t you just look like the cat that got into the cream?”


	20. Hazel

“Surely, you’re not implying I’m up to something?”

Hazel Levesque chuckled and poured herself a glass of wine. “I’m implying nothing. I’m asking **_what_** you’re up to.”

“DC is a beautiful city, especially with the adoption of solar glass and oasis greenhouses. Much more pleasant than a few decades ago. Perhaps I’m just appreciating the strides humanity has taken.”

“I hope you asked me to come visit for more than a glass of wine and a view.”

“All in good time.” He narrowed his eyes with mirth and looked at her sideways, “The suite here is spacious, quite large enough to accommodate a guest if you wish to stay for a few days.”

“Jason...”

“Enjoy the view. I’d like you to take a walk with me after we finish the wine. The city has a sight or two that will be well worth your trip.”


	21. Revelation

“This has become one of my favorite areas of the city recently,” Jason’s eyes sparkled with mischief. “It will take your breath away.”

“The college campus is quite lovely, but I don’t see anything particularly unique here.”

“Patience. We are so rarely surprised anymore.”

“I still haven’t decided what,” Her breath hitched and she stopped dead in her tracks, staring at a crowd of students spilling out of one of the buildings. She dug fingers into the sleeve of his jacket, still not breathing, her grip on his arm hard enough to break the bones of a mortal man. She finally gasped out a word, “Jason!”

“I take it you’ll be wanting to visit for a bit?”

“Jason, he’s...”

“I know.”


	22. Knows

It had actually taken a bit of effort to convince Hazel to return to the hotel instead of going straight over to Nico. If he had to be patient, so must she.

“He doesn’t know us?”

“Oh, he knows us.” Jason chuckled, recalling the expression on Nico’s face when Jason had confirmed he was Grace. “He knows us as every other mortal knows us. The gods who rose to power a few centuries ago and quelled the chaos of disasters and monsters running rampant through the world for everyone to see.”

“He doesn’t remember being Nico.” She frowned and shook her head, “Tell me you have a plan for this? I’m not going to waste the chance to have my brother back.”


	23. Plan

“I always have a plan.” Jason smirked, “For now, I want to start with slow exposure to his old family and life. See what that accomplishes.”

“When do I get to meet him?”

“Soon. You don’t think I asked you here just to dangle the knowledge in front of you?”

She folded her arms over her chest, “The thought had crossed my mind.”

“I want you to observe first. Get an idea of who he is now.”  He slowly opened his hand, lightning skittering around his fingers and over his palm. “Then, the goddess of the Mist can expand his horizons in digest-able chunks. Ease him into things.”


	24. Begin

“I should have known you didn’t call me just because he’s my brother.”

“I like having more than one reason for things. I’m not Jupiter to act purely on instinct and emotion.”

Hazel laughed, “You’re still the Roman Praetor I first knew under all of that sometimes.”

“There are worse things to be accused of.”

“Certainly.” Hazel sat down on the suite’s couch, spreading her arms out to take up as much space as possible, “So Lord Grace, where do I begin?”

Jason leaned on the arm of the nearest recliner and his smile became cat-like, “To start, his new name is Nico Moretti.”


	25. Sister

"Neeks, you okay?"

"Yes." Nico ran a hand through his hair and shifted the phone to his other hand. "Mostly. When are you getting into town?"

"Flight lands Friday around 8:30pm. You want to pick me up and get dinner together?"

"And drinks," He confirmed.

"Rough week, huh?"

"Very, very weird week. I need my sister."

"I'll be there as soon as I can. You sure you don't want to talk about it over the phone?"

"I'm sure."

"Okay. You know Mama and I are just a call away if you need anything."

"I know. I just, need a second head on something, and I absolutely cannot talk to Mama about it."

"Okay. I'll see you soon."


	26. Immortelle

Hazel stood up to leave, and Jason settled back in his spot, looking up at her uncertainly.

"You have a problem with this plan?"

Hazel opened her mouth, but her eyes fell to the vase of pink flowers housekeeping had brought in from the balcony to the coffee table in the center of the room.

"Xeranthemum Immortelle," She reached past him, pulling a single bloom from the arrangement. "You were dropping hints from the moment I arrived."

"I was uncertain how best to break the news. It is a happy surprise though, yes?"

She sighed and nodded, brushing soft petals against her cheek. "Very happy."


	27. Confirmation Bias

"You're really leaving though? Just like that?"

It was Hazel's turn to give him an enigmatic smile, "I thought you said the suite had enough space to accommodate a guest. Is the offer rescinded?"

"The offer stands."

"I'm going back to Olympus to pick up a few things. I'll be back."

"Thank you."

"Jason, you could have just explained everything before I came out here."

"As I said, surprises are rare for us, happy ones even more so. I wanted to give you that."

"And none of it had anything to do with having a second god confirm your discovery without bias?"

"No," Jason said firmly. "I have no doubts."


	28. It Will Be Different

She nodded, "Then I'm willing to cooperate with your plan, for now."

"That's all I ask."

"I  ** _will_** act on my own judgement rather than lose him again if I decide I don't like your plan."

"I have no intention of losing him, Hazel."

"I've heard that before."

His brows furrowed, and he bit his lip to avoid making an angry retort. He slowly exhaled, his eyes slipping away to look out the window, "I thought we were good."

"I accepted that we can't change the past. It doesn't mean I've forgotten, nor that I'm unable to learn from the past."

"This won't be the same."

"It had better not be."


	29. Drinks

The tall woman with tanned skin and hair nearly the same color as the wood paneling behind her returned to the seat opposite him, sliding one of the glasses of bourbon across the marble tabletop.

"Okay. Dinner's over. We're in a nice bar with good booze. Time you start telling me what had you so upset on the phone."

"You know that cafe I go to all the time?"

"I think I remember going there a couple of times. Good paninis."

"I kind of met someone there last week."

She raised one eyebrow and her smile became devilish, "And here you had me worried something was really wrong. Is he cute? Have you asked him out yet?"


	30. Reyna

"Cute would be the understatement of the century, but that's really not the issue."

"Please tell me you're not still on that no dating until you graduate thing."

"No!"

"Then what's the problem?" His sister persisted, "Is he not into you? Not into guys?"

"Reyna...."

"If he's not into you, that's his loss. You're..."

"He's not human."

Reyna's mouth snapped shut and she pursed her lips, processing the statement. "A demigod? Do you know who--"

"Not a demigod either."

"I'm going to need that bourbon now, aren't I?"

Nico nodded, and they clinked their glasses together, taking a long sip before returning them to the table.

"Okay." Reyna straightened in her seat, "No more joking around. Tell me what happened."


	31. Intrusion

Nico startled when a radiant woman with dark skin and thick curly hair the color of cinnamon slid gracefully into the seat next to him at the table. Across from him, a tall man with tanned skin and dark hair plopped down into the seat next to his sister, Reyna.

“These seats are taken,” Reyna frowned at the intruders. Nico had been telling her about his encounter with Grace last week, and the last thing either of them were in the mood for tonight was being hit on by random strangers. No matter how beautiful they were.

“Hey! RARA is with you!” The dark-haired man practically bounced in place. “Nobody mentioned that!”


	32. Siblings

“Go. Away.”

He ignored Reyna’s growl to look Nico up and down. “Wow, it’s kind of uncanny how much you still look the same. Healthier of course, but the basics are there.”

“What are you talking about?” Nico sighed, deciding that it would probably be easier to humor the drunk man and convince him to leave that way instead of just telling him to go away. Plus, if he was here to hit on Reyna, some well dropped flirting from Nico would probably run him off. _It didn’t hurt that those sea green eyes were the kind of thing you could get lost in. If he wasn't off put by the flirting, maybe Nico could get his number for later. Cute drunken flirts were a much more reasonable distraction than immortal gods._

“Percy, honestly.” The dark woman turned golden eyes on Nico, and when they flashed with light the way he’d seen only once before, he felt his stomach drop with realization. “It’s good to see you again, brother.”

“Nice try,” Reyna cut in. “I’m his sister, and I’d know if we had any other siblings. Now go find someone else to hit on. We're having a private conversation.”

Nico shook his head, unable to stop staring at the woman. _He’d re-read some of the stories about the New Gods after meeting Grace. Specifically, he’d read whatever he could find about Di Angelo._ “You’re like him. You’re the other gods.”

“Yep!” Percy leaned across the table to look at Nico more closely, and he shuddered, sitting back in his seat. _The man was suddenly a lot less cute, and a lot more intimidating._


	33. Hands Off

Reyna looked at the intruders more closely now, eyes narrowing as she took in the details. “If you’re calling Nico ‘brother’, you must be Di Angelo’s half sibling. Levesque?”

“Hazel, please.” She smiled warmly and put a hand over one of Nico’s. “It is an unexpected but pleasant surprise to meet you again as well, Praetor Ramírez-Arellano.”

Nico jerked his hand back as if he'd been burned.

“It’s Reyna Moretti. You’ve got the wrong person.” Reyna's scowl deepened, “People. So keep your hands off my brother.”

“I understand this is all very confusing for you.” Hazel Levesque spoke gently as she placed her hand back in front of her and made a placating gesture, “But I promise we--”

“Lighten up RARA,” The green-eyed god grinned and reached a hand across to ruffle Nico’s hair. “We’re not hurting anything. We’re just happy to see you two again. It’s been forever.”


	34. Mistake

Nico blushed bright red under the attention of the second breathtakingly handsome god to approach him in a week and tried not to squirm in his chair as those green eyes focused on him. _The attention was a warm and heavy weight, growing more so with each passing second. He was relieved when the hand left his hair as quickly as it had shot across the table._

“I’m telling you, my Nico isn’t your Di Angelo and I’m not this RaRah person.” Reyna argued. “Please just leave us out of…”

“We don’t make mistakes,” A voice came from behind her and both Moretti siblings looked up to find Grace had appeared out of nowhere, looking irritated. “I don’t remember telling you about this, Percy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please stop making comments that complain about the chapter length. I explained at the beginning each installment would be drabble-length. That's not going to change, it's part of the intended format, and complaining about it is really annoying.


	35. Personal Space

The unidentified god,  _Nico refused to think of him as having a mundane name like Percy_ , blinked and was suddenly next to Nico, chair and all, an arm thrown over his shoulder and a tongue stuck out playfully at the king of the gods. “I’ve known Nico longer than you or Hazel, of course I wanted to see him again.”

“Sorry Jason,” Levesque sighed. “He just sort of tagged along.”

“I was bored, and what fun is this!?”

Nico and Reyna exchanged nervous looks. He nodded when her expression asked if the newcomer was Grace.

“Get off him Jackson,” _Grace’s irritation was still obvious. If anything, his mood was darkening._ “Not everyone is a tactile as you are.”

_Jackson. This man was the sea god._

Jackson squeezed Nico closer, pressing their cheeks together. His eyes remained focused on Grace, and the tone of his voice dropped suggestively, “You’re just jealous because Nico has always liked me better.”

Nico jerked his gaze between the two gods, and he swore his face must have gotten even redder as the insinuation of that statement landed home. _That had definitely not been in the stories he’d found about Di Angelo._

Grace growled, sounding terrifyingly like the wolf associated with him, and suddenly Nico was standing a few feet away from the table, Grace’s arm around his waist in a possessive fashion. The warmth of that hand permeating his shirt in a way that was almost as alarming as the growl. Nico was uncomfortably reminded that the king of the gods was known to throw lightning with those hands.


	36. Back Off

“Back off, Jackson.”

"Nico!" Reyna started to jump out of her seat, only for Levesque to make a gesture that grabbed her attention and left her staring uncertainly at the goddess, half out of her chair, but no longer moving towards her brother.

"Boys," The goddess chastised calmly. "You are making a scene."

Grace's fingers tightened momentarily but then he released Nico and turned to face him, ignoring Jackson, who was still lounging in a chair next to Nico's empty one. 

Grace spoke smoothly despite the way his blue eyes flickered with unnatural light. _Was that an effect of when they got emotional? Or was it a sign they were about to use their powers?_

"My apologies. I didn't mean to frighten you."

Nico took a step backwards, eyes darting between Reyna and the god in front of him. "It's..." He swallowed hard, steeling himself against the habit to just accept an apology and forgive. He forced himself to sound more angry than frightened. _It wasn't easy after being pulled around like a toy by a couple of gods. He might have even halfway managed it,_ "What happened to waiting until I had time?"

"I can wait." That still unnaturally warm hand brushed a few strands of hair behind Nico's ear, caressing his cheek as it did so. "I did not say I would stand idly by if someone else attempted to move in on you."


	37. Exclusive

"Everything I read about Di Angelo indicated you and he were rather," He bit his bottom lip and looked to the side in embarrassment knowing his sister was right there, listening to every word. "Exclusive. If I am him, what do you have to be worried about?"

He looked up when the god didn't respond immediately, and saw a genuinely sad expression on his face, the blue eyes noticeably dimmer than they had been moments before. When Grace spoke, his voice was a soft whisper that Nico was certain didn’t carry to their audience, "I was not your first love Nico, in that life nor in this one. There are some risks I am not willing to entertain."

Nico swallowed and took another step back.  _This was too serious. Grace was far too invested in this entire idea. He wasn't Di Angelo. What would Grace do when he finally realized that?_  

"I'm just trying to have a night out with my sister."

"Which is why I believe Hazel thought she might be able to join in." He smiled gently, eyes still dimmed with... _was that anxiety?_ "She was your sister once."


	38. Compromise

"Can't you just leave us alone? All of you?"

"I can only order my fellow gods so far, Nico. Why not indulge us to share a drink with you and your sister? I am certain I can convince them to leave the rest of your evening undisturbed."

Nico glanced at Reyna again, who was now standing next to the table, fists clenching and unclenching while the other two gods watched the exchange with interest.

"Okay."

"Thank you." Jason smiled brightly then, a sparkle returning to those blue eyes, and Nico turned back towards the table, telling the rush of hormones that it did not matter that he'd had that much of an effect on the god's mood. _Regardless of how pretty he was. Especially when he was this happy, smiling like a child given a toy they’d been begging for._


	39. Seating Arrangements

The bar was fairly crowded now, so they couldn't move from the four-seater table he and Reyna had originally laid claim to.

"Oh no," The green-eyed sea god said in mock horror, everything aside from his words speaking of immense amusement. "There's no more free chairs. Nico will just have to sit on my lap."

He patted his thigh as if inviting Nico to sit, and Nico didn't have to turn around to know Grace's expression had gone stormy again.

"We can't leave the Lord of the Skies standing." Jackson continued through a wide grin, "And I know you wouldn't ask one of the lovely ladies to give up their seats."

Nico's response was a stiff as his tensed muscles, "I'll just stand."

"Nonsense," Grace rumbled. "I can manage just fine. Sit."


	40. Surrounded

Nico sat obediently and felt warmth collect behind him as Grace placed his hands on the back of the chair and leaned against it, leaving Nico's hair to brush against the shirt he was wearing. There was a pleased hum, and Nico wondered if maybe he shouldn't go find another chair for the sake of his own sanity.

Jackson chuckled, "Now isn't that a pretty picture?"

Reyna hesitantly sat down again. She was alone on her side of the table while Nico was very literally surrounded by the visiting gods. _He felt a little pinned in. More than a little._


	41. Riches and the Sea

"Percy, don't be rude." Levesque waved to the abandoned side of the table. "Go sit over there. You're blocking the walkway and leaving Reyna out."

"I'd hate to get on RARA's bad side," Percy disappeared and reappeared where he and the chair had originally been. "Better?"

"Already on my bad side," Reyna grumbled. "So we're obligated for a drink? Fine. Why don't you three go order something?"

"Already handled," Hazel said, waving a hand towards the bar. One of the bartenders jumped, and sent a waiter with a bottle and five glasses on a tray towards the table. "On me, of course."

"Of course," Reyna responded cautiously. "Levesque, goddess of magic and riches, right?"

"The Mist and earthly riches to be technical, but it's the same general meaning, yes."

"And that," Reyna pointed roughly at Jackson with a thumb. "Is the god of the seas?"

"Percy Jackson," Hazel nodded while smiling as if this were the best form of entertainment in the world.

"Percy?" Reyna frowned.

"That's me!" The god in question answered cheerfully.


	42. Personal Space

"Our mother studied the New Gods and your rise to power. She's never said anything about you having these other names."

"Nico mentioned as much," Grace leaned in closer, his torso pressed fully against the back of Nico's head and shoulders as he reached past him to take up the bottle and pour a rich amber liquid into each of the waiting glasses. Nico sat frozen as this happened, not wanting to risk causing the god to spill. _Something about the motion felt both awkward and vaguely domestic. Familiar._ "Did your mother never discuss her findings with you two?"

"Not much," Reyna admitted, eyeing Grace as if he were doing something obscene. "Is that really necessary?"

"No," Jason chuckled. "Chalk it up to my being a bit old fashioned."

"Or just old."


	43. Age Difference

He placed one of the glasses directly in front of Nico, next to the nearly empty bourbon and then took one for himself as he straightened up, fingers just barely brushing Nico's back where they rested on the chair.

"You have a point, Reyna?"

"Don't you think maybe you're a little old for him?"

"By that logic, I would be too old for anyone." Grace raised his glass to her, "Please, have some. I assure you Hazel has excellent taste. As for your admirable sisterly concern, Nico is an adult. Capable of making his own choices. As are you. Allow him to make his."

"I'm more worried that you're not allowing it." Reyna looked at the glasses then back to the god. "How many times does he have to tell you to leave him alone?"


	44. Bicker

"He doesn't remember me yet," Grace countered.

"He isn't Di Angelo."

"He is with you, Reyna. We all recognize his soul, and yours. Denial does not change facts."

"The facts are, he asked you to leave him alone, and you're still here."

Nico remained tense in his chair, worried her words would cause the god to retaliate. He didn't know what he could do if the gods decided she was more frustrating than entertaining.

"I want Nico to make an informed choice, not an impulsive one. Indulge me with some time, Praetor."

Reyna ground out the words between clenched teeth, "My name is not Praetor."

"Reyna..."

"No."


	45. Alternate Solution

"Ms. Moretti," Hazel interrupted. "If we had no intention of allowing Nico to make a choice, matters would already be settled and none of us would be here."

Both siblings responded simultaneously, "What is that supposed to mean?"

"That you can believe we have no intention of forcing you into anything, Nico."

Percy laughed, "What Hazel means is, if we didn't care what Nico thought, we'd have whisked him away to Olympus already."

Nico jerked in his seat, putting a couple of inches of distance between Grace and himself. When he turned to look up, the god looked genuinely hurt by the motion. Nico winced in sympathy. He wasn't very good at ignoring how other people felt. _Gods were still people, right? And this man, this very handsome man, seemed to have pinned a lot of hope on the idea that Nico was this long-dead demigod he shared a name with._


	46. Perspective

"I'm not going to hurt you," Grace said gently, removing his hand from the back of the chair.

Nico bit down the way part of him wanted to reach out for that hand, and tell Grace everything was okay. Nothing was okay, and he wasn’t responsible for this god’s feelings. He wasn’t the source of them. It was all misdirected, and there was no reason for the twinge in Nico’s heart right now.

"The point being, we obviously aren't about to simply circumvent his will. We just want the chance to get to know him again." Levesque turned her attention from the silent exchange between Grace and Nico and back towards Reyna. "Imagine if you lost your brother and when you found him again he didn't remember you. Wouldn't you work for the opportunity to be a part of his life once more?"

"This isn't the same thing."

"It is exactly the same thing. We just take things from a longer perspective than you do." Hazel shook her head, looking sad, "I love Nico just as much as you do, Reyna. You knew this once. We were friends many years ago, and I would very much like to have both my friend and my brother back."


	47. One Drink

"We're humans. You're,” Reyna made a helpless gesture at the gods. “Not."

"Which is why it is all the more important to take advantage of whatever time we can get. Your lives are so short, and we have missed you for so long. We're just asking for a chance to be a part of your lives."

Nico looked towards Levesque then, noting the way those gold eyes flashed as she focused all of her attention on Reyna. There was something incredibly heavy about having the full weight of a god's interest. He shivered slightly, having been on the receiving end of that weight a couple of times now, from Grace. Even now the god wasn't fully focused on him the way Hazel was on Reyna. Not like he wasn't paying attention, he was, but it felt different.

He could see it effecting Reyna. It was hard to tell them no like this.

Reyna released a slightly shaky breath, "Just one drink, right?"

"Of course!" Hazel's focus lightened, and she smiled brightly, passing one of the glasses to Reyna before claiming one for herself.

Reyna's eyes met Nico's, and he could see the relief there. The full weight of a god's attention was warm and heady, but intimidating too.


	48. Cheers

Jackson grabbed his own glass and raised it towards the center of the table, "Cheers!"

They all followed suit, clinking the glasses together and taking a sip, Nico leaning back in his chair as he did so. They talked for a long time, mostly the gods asking about Reyna and Nico's lives up to that point. 

Reyna was older, and had been adopted when Nico was five, so they'd been together most of their lives. Nico didn't really remember not having Reyna as his big sister. He talked about his classes at the university, and Reyna talked about her work at the air force base out in California. The gods seemed amused by the sibling's career paths, but wouldn't explain why. 

With the bottle of expensive brandy emptied, Reyna kept glancing at Nico with increasing urgency as her answers became shorter and shorter. He knew what she was waiting for. _"The Drink" was finished, and they were supposed to leave them alone now. Except, it didn't seem as urgent now. The conversation was pleasant, and aside from the occasional mysterious smile at each other, the gods were behaving like normal people. It was kind of nice actually. If he didn't think about who they were, they meshed just as easily as any of his other friends. Okay, so they were several times more beautiful than most of his friends, but aside from that it felt comfortable and natural sitting here chatting with them._


	49. Leave

The current discussion ebbed, and Grace's hand on his shoulder squeezed gently, making him look up into sky blue eyes that flashed in that unnatural way above a small smile.

"It's time we take our leave."

"Oh." The last thing he had expected was for Grace to initiate it. He was keeping his word, but somehow Nico had been certain he or Reyna would have to point it out first.

"Thank you for indulging our company tonight, Nico." Grace broke eye contact to look at his sister, "Reyna."

Next to him, Levesque sighed loudly, "I suppose we shouldn't make a liar of you. Come on, Percy."

"I guess that's enough for tonight." Jackson laughed and stood, grinning widely at both siblings, "See ya soon, Moretti."


	50. Goodbye

Jackson took a few steps into the crowd and seemed to melt into the masses, leaving Reyna and Nico blinking at how easily he'd left after his initial antagonism and clinginess, and uncertain which of them he meant he would see "soon."

Levesque shook her head, "Yell for me if he gives you any trouble. He shouldn't but--"

"But what?" Nico asked when she trailed off.

"Jackson can be a bit of a wild card." She placed a quick kiss on Nico's cheek before standing and offering a hand to Reyna. "It was good to spend time with you two. I hope I can do so again."

"We'll see," Reyna answered carefully, standing so she could shake the goddess's hand, but staring as if the mundane gesture were suddenly alien.

Hazel smiled warmly, "Take care of him, Reyna. I'm counting on you."

"Has nothing to do with you," Reyna frowned.

The goddess seemed amused, "Of course not."


	51. First Name

Grace's hand left Nico's shoulder then and he turned again at the sudden loss of contact. He had become strangely comfortable with it while they were talking, and now its lack made him feel a little cold.

Grace was watching him, blue eyes warm and crinkling at the corners. Nico's stomach did a little flip in response. "Good night, Nico."

He swallowed, this time for an entirely different reason, "Good night, Grace."

"Jason."

"Jason," Nico echoed, feeling his cheeks heat up even as he did. He was pretty sure you weren't supposed to be on a first name basis with the gods.

"If you need anything," Levesque spoke smoothly as if the two men weren't making eyes at each other. "You'll find a number where you can reach me on your phones."

"When did you?!" Reyna sputtered, but the goddess was already gone, disappearing in a shifting of shadows.

"Good night to you too, Reyna," Grace ignored the exchange between the women taking few steps back before turning to walk through the crowd, and out into a sudden downpour of rain, where he disappeared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got one more installment ready to go, then this fic will be on hold while I try to focus on writing the entirety of a Saturnalia-themed fic before the year ends.


	52. Too Easy

"Take the lovesick eyes down a notch, Neeks." Reyna sounded tired as she plopped back into her seat. "He's a god, remember? A god that is interested in you because he thinks you're his dead lover."

"Right." Nico rubbed his forehead as if he could erase the memory of how he had felt so comfortable with those gods. It wasn't natural. It couldn't be real. "Guys that pretty don't go chasing after guys like me."

"Only because guys that pretty don't exist without supernatural intervention." Reyna interrupted. "I'm not saying you don't deserve a guy that good looking, but this is definitely a gift horse you need to look in the mouth. He's centuries old, and you're the one who's going to get hurt when he gets it through his thick skull that you aren't Di Angelo."

"I know." Nico let his hand drop to cover his mouth and stared at the empty brandy bottle and glasses. 

He hadn't even drank that much. He and Reyna had stuck to one glass a piece while the gods had consumed the majority of the bottle. He couldn't blame the warm feeling in his stomach and his lowered guard on the alcohol, but he certainly wasn't the reincarnation of some demigod from a set of gods that no longer existed either. So why did he feel so comfortable with Grace when he wasn't focused on what he was? 

"What are you thinking?"

"It's too easy to be comfortable with him,” Nico shook his head. “With all of them, and I don't know why."

Reyna sighed deeply, "I feel the same way, and I don’t trust that."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will be the last update for a bit while I focus on a seasonal-themed fic through the end of the year.


	53. The Next Step

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Next Step

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So if you were watching for it, that Saturnalia fic did not go as planned. I vacationed on my vacation. I regret nothing.

Nico's head jerked up as someone slid into the seat across from him at his favorite cafe. _He'd half expected it to be Grace again. He'd caught sight of the god a few times around town, and although he hadn't approached him again directly since Reyna's visit, he knew the man was still hanging around the area._

_It wasn't Grace._

Hazel Levesque sat across from him, reclined casually in the chair, sipping a coffee as if this were perfectly normal.

"Hi," Nico greeted her uncertainly.

"Hi," She smiled at him warmly, and he couldn't help but feel his muscles un-tense a little bit.


	54. Monsters

They sat in silence for several minutes before Nico finally spoke, "You look different today."

She did. She was taller and thinner, her features less soft, and she wore practical jeans with a fitted sweater and boots very unlike the fashionable dress she'd worn to the bar. Instead of the halo of soft cinnamon curls, her hair was arranged into neat braids shot through with gold.

"I've had a busier day," She set her coffee down and crossed her legs. "With Jason spending so much time around here lately, there's been an increase in monster activity to match. I had to take care of a couple of nuisances."

Nico felt his jaw drop, "Monsters still exist?"

"Of course they do." Levesque chuckled. "We just take care of them when they pose a threat to the mortals. We're gods; we're supposed to protect you."


	55. Invitation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Invitation

"I just thought you would have gotten rid of all of them by now." Nico flushed with embarrassment, "It's been hundreds of years, right?"

Levesque sighed and her expression darkened a little, "The monsters are immortal in their own way. As long as stories of them survive, they're reborn. Over and over again. It never ends."

He dropped his eyes, suddenly feeling guilty he hadn't known what the gods did to protect humans, "I didn't know."

"That's good." Levesque's voice had a gentle urgency to it. "If you've never seen a monster, it means we've kept you safe. That's all we want in the world, Nico, for you to be safe and happy."

"You mean all humans."

"Yes, but at the same time, some matter more than others. For me, you matter more."

He traced the pattern on the table with one finger, "And for Grace."

"Yes, for Jason as well." She leaned forward on the table, resting her chin in one hand and giving him a cat-like smile when he looked up to meet those molten gold eyes. "Would you like to see him in action? I think he's still handling a Manticore that came too close to the city."


	56. Clear Vision

"Would I be able to see anything?" Nico bit his bottom lip, but couldn't contain his curiosity. "I heard most mortals can't really see monsters clearly."

"Goddess of The Mist," Levesque rolled her fingers in a faux dramatic gesture. "I can make sure your vision is clear, if you want it to be."

_So sue him. His mother studied the New Gods. He, even more than most people, had grown up with stories of them and the demigods. He had always been interested in what the monsters really looked like. What the gods looked like. This was his childhood fantasies served up on a golden platter._

"If you think it's safe," He temporized.

"You'll always be safe with me, brother."

_He just needed to convince them to stop calling him that. Without losing access to thier world. That was the hard part. He was fascinated by everything about them, but he also was not who they though he was._


	57. First Hero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First sight of a Hero in action.

_Grace certainly more than earned his name._ It was like something out of the old films, seeing him flying around the creature, slashing with a golden sword, then spinning out of harm's way with more elegance than any dancer Nico had ever seen. His expression wasn't stressed in the least, rather it was contemplative, as if he was using the act of fighting a monster as an exercise in meditation. _He was beautiful._

 _And as beautiful as Grace was, the monster was equally horrifying. The face of a man on a lion's body with a giant scorpion's tail? It just felt wrong._ Looked wrong in a way that made his stomach twist. 

It was easier to watch Grace, golden and all but reflecting the late afternoon sunlight. 

Nico wondered absentmindedly if he'd always looked like this, even before achieving godhood. He imagined he could see the demigod hero within the god here. _He certainly looked heroic. He looked mythic._

The monster took notice of Levesque and Nico watching the exchange and made a move as if to leap at them. Grace swooped in at just the right moment, his sword slicing through, reducing the creature to glittering dust that sprayed up into a plume around him. _It seemed impossible to be real._

"Nico?" Those bright blue eyes immediately focused on him, concern and surprise reflected back, then they flicked to Levesque beside him and narrowed slightly.

There was a silent exchange between the two gods Nico didn't understand, but they both smiled at each other, and Grace wiped his sword blade off with a cloth retrieved from a pocket before sheathing it and walking over to them.


	58. How Do I Look?

Grace's voice was warm and friendly when he reached them, "Hazel, are you two out having fun?"

"Just a little mild entertainment," Levesque sounded amused. "You could have let it go on a bit longer. What did you think, Nico?"

He blanched when both gods turned to him expecting a response, and he ran a hand through his hair, suddenly hyper-aware of how he looked. Still in the same jeans he'd been wearing for the past three days and one of those cute-ugly sweaters that he'd owned for years that now sported various pulls and loose threads in the knit. He suddenly felt very shabby.

"I... uh..."

"Do I frighten you now?" There was that sad shift in Grace's demeanor again, and Nico's dark eyes snapped up to meet blue, instinctively wanting fix it.

"No, you looked really," He blushed, trying to find better words than what he'd been thinking a minute before, but found himself at a loss. "Heroic. Like one of the old films come to life."

"Oh?" Levesque's voice took on a teasing tone, not unlike Reyna's. "Which one?"

"I dunno," Nico's eyes shifted around, searching for an answer. "Like Superman, or Thor, I guess. The good ones," He amended lamely.

"Like a superhero," Levesque's eyes did that unnatural flashing thing as she looked at Grace, and Nico dragged his eyes back to the god's face.

Grace was smiling, widely like an innocent kid, and there was a faint tinge of red to his cheeks. _Was he blushing?_ Nico immediately started to lower his eyes, feeling like he was seeing something he shouldn't, something private. He froze for a moment when his gaze caught on something out of place. A stain of golden liquid standing out against Grace's white shirt. _The fabric was torn. A slash across his rib-cage. Gods bled golden ichor, right? Grace was bleeding. Grace was hurt!_


	59. Just A Scratch

Nico stepped forward without thinking, a hand moving towards the injury and stopping just short of touching.

He knew Grace and Levesque were staring at his sudden action in confusion.

"You're hurt," He said softly. "I didn't think you could..."

Grace's hand covered his, pressing it against the damaged area while his other hand tangled in Nico's hair. Behind the torn fabric and damp feeling of ichor, the skin felt smooth and whole.

"Just a scratch. I'm fine. It's better already." 

He pulled Nico's hand away gently, and showed that the skin was already closed, no trace of whatever had left the godly blood on his shirt. Not even a red mark.

"Oh."

"Thank you for worrying about me."

Grace pulled Nico's hand up to kiss the back of it, and Nico felt that heaviness settling in around him. _The god was focusing on him. That full focus that made it hard to think about anything other than the god in front of him. As if the man wasn't already distracting enough without help._

When Nico tipped his gaze up to meet blue eyes again, the hand in his hair slid down, coming to rest at the back of his neck. A warm breath ghosted against the back of his hand, lips no longer in contact with his flesh.

_Why was indulging the gorgeous god’s interest a bad idea again?_


	60. Manticore

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Changing to Jason's POV for a bit.

_Hazel was brilliant._

He could have spun her around and hugged her breathless.

Centuries ago, Nico Di Angelo had formed a crush on Percy when he rescued him and his sister from a Manticore attack. The Percy then had reminded a young Nico Di Angelo of the heroes from his card games.

Knowing he was dispatching a Manticore that had wandered into the city, she had somehow talked Nico Moretti into coming to watch him fight it. Now, Nico was calling him heroic. He could have burst from joy.

And now Nico had come within inches of him, entirely of his own accord, hand stopped just short of touching.

He hadn't even noticed he'd gotten hurt.

Nico had though.

He found his hands on the young man without thinking about it, reassuring him. He was a god now. The next best thing to invincible. Nico never had to worry about him again. Although he couldn't deny it warmed every inch of him to know that Nico did. And Nico certainly wasn't complaining about the touching. If anything, the man was blushing.

He'd take the small victory.

It was a beginning.


	61. Let's Move Inside

Hazel coughed, and chuckled when both men broke gazes to look a her. "Either kiss already, or let's move somewhere where Nico can be warm and Jason can get cleaned up."

That seemed to jump start Nico's awareness of just how intimately Jason had been holding him. He resisted the urge to pout when Nico took a few steps backward, forcing Jason to drop his hands.

"Sorry," Nico was looking at his feet, and the tips of his ears had gone red.

_Well, if he hadn't been blushing before, he certainly was now. Adorable._

"Nothing to be sorry for," Hazel responded lightly. "But it is cold out and you are mortal. I don't want you catching cold."

"People don't catch colds because of temperature fluctuations," Nico started.

Hazel breezed right over him, and Jason repressed a laugh _. She'd brought him out of his embarrassed daze._ "You two can make doe eyes at each other once we're inside."

Nico bit his lip as if he wanted to argue, but didn't. Jason decided to chalk that up to another small victory. _The man was attracted to him, and that he wasn't denying it outright was definitely a good thing._


	62. Illusion

They were at the over-sized penthouse suite where Jason and Hazel had been staying the last few weeks. Jason had changed clothes in the mundane way, an attempt to keep Nico comfortable, while Hazel gave him a warm drink. He returned to the sitting room to see them sitting side by side on the couch, the nearby holo-screen turned on to a weather report while they sipped from matching mugs.

If he didn't think about it. If he ignored the modern furniture and the new technology. This could have been a moment from his life before. Before he had become a fully-fledged god. Before Nico died. It would be easy to mistake the hotel sitting room for the New York apartment they'd shared. It almost looked like the home he didn't realize quite how badly he had been missing. Two children of Hades sitting on the couch sharing a quiet conversation when he entered from another room. He stopped in the doorway just watching them, his heart clenched, afraid to break the illusion.

Hazel looked up first, her smile dropping when she met his eyes. "Jason? Jason, what's wrong?"

Nico was slower to turn, dark brown eyes wide and worried.

He took a step forwards and shook his head slowly. "It's nothing."


	63. You Were Crying

"Jason," Hazel grit her teeth as she drew his name out.

"Just remembering," He answered her softly. "It's been a long time. That's all."

Hazel's lips thinned as she pulled them between her teeth in sympathy and nodded. He wondered if she'd had a similar moment at some point, seeing him and Nico together. He walked over to sit on the other side of Nico, who watched him warily.

"So what are you two drinking?" He smiled, trying to erase the unease he'd created.

"Hot chocolate," Hazel answered.

Nico wasn't going to be so cooperative, "You were crying."

Jason blinked at him in shock, "What? I was no--"

But the man reached out, brushing a finger across his cheek and presenting a drop of salt water for his inspection. Nico's voice was stern, "Maybe not much, but you were."


	64. Wrong

"I'm fine, really."

Nico glared at him, obviously not agreeing with his assessment, but not confident enough to argue outright. Jason's fingers clenched and unclenched on the back of the couch. It was a painfully familiar moment, and all he really wanted was to pull Nico into his arms and bury his face against Nico's shoulder. An action that Nico Di Angelo would have groaned at but held him for as long as he needed. Nico Moretti might run away and never look back.

Jason couldn't allow that. _Couldn't be the cause of that._

"I'm just being sentimental, Nico. It's fine."

"This was a mistake." He sighed and set the mug down on the table. "I am not Di Angelo."

"Nico," Hazel started to argue, her voice pained.

"You're both really nice. Nicer than I expected, but this is wrong." He stood, looking towards the door, already taking the first steps towards it. _He was going to run._ "I can't be your dead friend. I'm not him. I'm sorry."


	65. Interested

"Nico."

Jason was surprised when the man froze mid-step at the urgent utterance of his name. It wasn't a yell, or a command, but he stopped.

"Stay. Just be yourself. Let us get to know you. Get to know us."

"I'm never going to  ** _be_** him."

"Don't think about that. Just be here. That's all we're asking for."

Nico turned back to face them, expression uncertain.

"I want to know  ** _you_** , Nico Moretti." Jason extended a hand, inviting him back to the couch. "If the interest is even just a little mutual, give me a chance."

Nico blushed then, raising his hand that had brushed away the lone tear, and staring at it in accusation.

"You say that as if there's anyone in the world who wouldn't be," Nico grumbled.

Jason felt a small smile return to his face, "I promise you have been a unique experience. I'm never sure what to expect."


	66. Sentimental

"Please come back and sit," Hazel added gently.

Nico heaved a heavy sigh and returned to them, dark eyes watching Jason suspiciously as he sat down once more. "Explain why you cried."

Behind Nico, Hazel shot him a warning glare.

Jason sighed, knowing he couldn't ask her to leave, as much as he wanted to at the moment, nor get away with not explaining his strong reaction to Nico.

"I have been around a very long time, you realize that, right?"

"Of course."

"When I was mortal, I grew up without a family. The demigods I grew close to were the only family I ever knew. They were my family." Jason sighed deeply, "And even if you set everything else aside, you still bear a striking resemblance to Nico Di Angelo. When I came back into the room, seeing you and Hazel sitting together, for a moment it looked like a part of my family was back. A part I have not had for centuries. I am not so old as to be untouched by that."

Nico's response was soft, barely above a whisper, "Oh."

Hazel's response was less composed. She surged across the couch, catching both men in a tight hug. "Oh, Jay."

He knew he should protest her grabbing Nico without the man's consent, but he couldn't recall the last time she had hugged him. _It had been so long._ It had become a rare event after Nico died, so he just hugged back, more focused on the affection from Hazel than the fact Nico was pressed against his side. _She was his sister in so many ways that mattered. The only sister he had left in the world._

Nico didn't protest, even when they finally separated, releasing him from the sideways position he'd been dragged in by.

Hazel gave a breathless little laugh, "You big dork."

Jason just smiled at her, his grin getting wider with each chuckle from Hazel. 

_Oh, how he'd missed this. This was his family. Even if Nico didn't remember, didn't believe them yet, he was the missing piece that made their little bit of family whole. Jason and Hazel could both feel it._


	67. Wake Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure if I mentioned this before, but this fic exists because of an idea I'd been ruminating on for a while combo-ed with a flower meanings meme prompt from [TinyBro](http://tinybro.tumblr.com/) on tumblr and encouraged to continue by [CarolynTheLibrarian](http://carolynthelibrarian.tumblr.com/). These two encourage a lot of the Jasico I've produced, and I am very grateful to them for feeding that particular muse.

Nico blinked groggily, and found himself waking up on an unfamiliar couch, a generic white duvet tucked in around his shoulders. He blinked at the strange living room, trying to recall how he'd gotten there.

_Oh._

He'd been chatting with two gods after watching one defeat a manticore, and ended up watching a film on the hotel holo-screen over delivered food.

_It still seems surreal. This can’t possibly be my life._

Sounds nearby made Nico sit up, turning towards the noise. The rising sun silhouetted Grace who was framed by the sliding doorframe that let out onto a small balcony. 


	68. Mundane

The god turned to him from the doorway, a dimmer glow seeming to emanate from underneath the exposed skin of his bare chest as he smiled to see Nico awake.

“I hope I didn’t wake you.”

“No.” He was reasonably sure that was true.

“Would you like some coffee?” Grace stepped into the room, pulling a bouquet of flowers from behind his back and stopping to replace the wilting ones in a vase. 

Nico watched in fascination, mundane actions from a man who was anything but.

Grace hummed when the silence stretched too long.

“Coffee?”

“Oh! Yes.”

Nico’s cheeks burned.


	69. Coffee

Grace sat next to him when he returned with coffee, carefully not touching even as he passed over the mug.

“I hope you don’t mind that we left you sleeping on the couch,” Grace faltered, his gaze focusing on a lock of hair that fell across Nico’s cheek. “We didn’t want to move you without your permission, and you looked so peaceful.”

Nico turned from his gaze, focusing on the coffee he held. The sense of a heavy weight was back, the one that came with being under a god’s full attention. Grace wasn’t doing anything, and yet he was.

“It’s fine. Sorry for falling asleep here.”

“You’re welcome anytime. I’m glad you felt comfortable with us.”

“That’s not exactly,” He glanced back at Grace, brushing the stray hair behind his ear. Yes, he’d been comfortable just being around the two, as long as he didn’t think about what they were or why they were interested in him, but it wasn’t… His brain faltered at Grace’s expression. “Wasn’t he comfortable around you?”

“Not always. Not in the early days.”

He needed to change the subject. Needed to distract Grace. He felt too exposed, too close to… something that wasn’t possible.


	70. Flowers

“I thought hotel staff would handle things like decorative flowers.”

The non sequitur was enough to break Grace’s intense focus on him. He felt lighter, but also a little disappointed at the loss of the sensation. He didn’t want to dwell on that feeling.

Grace chuckled warmly, looking at the flowers. They were similar to daisies, but smaller with a thready texture to the petals and furry foliage. They looked wild, not like something cultivated in a garden. “The Aurae bring me fresh flowers fairly regularly. It’s not a service the hotel provides.”

“You like flowers?”

“I like feeling connected to the earth sometimes. It’s the source of a lot of beauty in this world.”

He recalled that Nico Di Angelo had been a child of Hades, of the Underworld. In a way, he had been a product of the earth. So was Levesque, the goddess Grace also called sister.

“So what’s this one called?”

“The flower?”

Nico nodded.

Grace set down his coffee mug on the table and chuckled, watching Nico’s reaction as he spoke with a mischievous smile, “Kiss Me and I’ll Tell You.”

Nico felt his skin heat up, knew he must be blushing furiously. “Excuse me?”


	71. Kiss Me and I’ll Tell You

“Kiss Me and I’ll Tell You.”

Nico’s eyes darted to the flowers, then to Grace’s exposed chest. He still hadn’t put on a shirt, and it felt ridiculously unfair compared to the plain jeans and worn out black undershirt he’d been wearing since yesterday. He pulled his gaze up to those blue eyes and the lips that smirked at him, temptation in human form. Levesque had been here last night, but there was no sign of her now. It was just the two of them alone in a penthouse suite.

Really, it was just a kiss, and he was curious…

Nico darted forward, pressing lips against the god’s cheek in a brief peck, his eyelashes and messy morning curls brushing against golden flesh before he pulled back, focusing intently on his coffee.

“So what is the name?”

He heard the god swallow and take in a slow deep breath in the pause, managing to sound both surprised and hungry.

Had he thought Nico wouldn’t take him up on it?

“Kiss Me and I’ll Tell You.” Nico jerked his head around to glare. It had been cute once, but twice was pushing it. “It’s the common name of the flower.”

“Oh.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The "Daisy Fleabane" is a wildflower that in rural areas of the SouthEastern US is also known by the common name "Kiss-Me-and-I'll-Tell-You." I thought it'd be fun to include since a flower meanings ficlet prompt started this story.


	72. Harmless Trick

“I didn’t think you actually would, but…” Grace leaned in kissing Nico on the cheek now, lips warm and bringing the smell of a thunderstorm and cut leaves. “Thank you.”

The last two words were whispered next to Nico’s ear, and he just stared harder at his coffee, waiting for the god to lean back out of his personal space.

“Don’t try to trick me again, okay?”

“I’ll try not to.” Grace leaned back into the couch.

Nico snuck a glance to find he was being watched with a gentle expression.

He whispered, “What?”

“I’m just so happy you’re here.”


	73. Where is Mine

Warning aside, Nico seemed amused by the flower name and centuries-old lovers’ joke. Jason wondered what other flowers he might introduce, and what reactions they would elicit.

It was easy to overlook Hazel ‘s presence, sleeping in the other room, while Nico occupied his attention. She wasn’t about to permit herself to slip his mind though. Nor risk him making a wrong move and alienating the man. Not after he had nearly walked out last night.

Jason jumped when she wrapped her arms around him over the back of the couch, laughing as she asked, “And where is my coffee?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to hit me with flower suggestions in the comments that I can try to work into the story. Since this started from a flower meanings prompt, I'd like to keep circling back to that.


	74. Laughter

"You can get your own coffee," Jason chuckled and moved to kiss Hazel's cheek. "You've been living here. Nico's a guest."

She faked a pout, which was quickly overpowered by an amused smile.

_It felt so much like home. Like having his family back in one piece. They needed Nico. Not just because Jason still loved him romantically. He was a part of them, like sunlight, like the earth, like the sea, like their powers. Nico, no matter what name he bore now, was a cornerstone to their whole constructed family._

He didn't realize he was grinning like a delighted child until Hazel pinched his cheek and pulled with a smirk.

"Put a shirt on, you overgrown dork. We all get it, you have muscles."

Nico snorted a laugh, covering the outburst with a hand and blushing hard enough to turn his ear tips red as both gods turned to the sound.

"Sorry," he mumbled between fingers.

"Don't be sorry!" Hazel ruffled his hair as she turned towards the kitchenette and coffee. "He needs to be laughed at. Keeps him sensible. If anything, you should laugh at him more."

“Please do,” Jason added warmly. “You have a nice laugh, Nico.”


	75. What'd He Do?

Grace brushed a knuckle and fingertips lightly across Nico’s temple and back, mussing the hair there in a way that echoed Levesque’s playful action, but that the look in his eyes gave volumes more weight.

The feel of the kiss on his cheek only moments before suddenly felt hot, and he wondered if that was only his imagination or some godly side-effect.

“I’ll be right back,” Grace rose, skin still almost glowing with morning sunlight as he left them for one of the suite’s bedrooms.

“What’d he do?”

Nico blinked a few times before tearing his focus away from the doorway Grace had disappeared through to Levesque next to him on the couch.

“We were talking about the flowers,” His voice sounded slow and dreamlike, even to him. Over-exposure to the gods and their weighty focus? Should this worry him?

She squinted judgmentally at the vase, then back to him, “Weeds?”

“I guess?” He leaned forward, fingertips brushing the tiny petals, “He said they were commonly called ‘Kiss-Me-and-I’ll-Tell-You’.”

He could hear the raised eyebrow in her voice, “They are. Did he get his kiss out of it?”

“Just on the cheek.” Somehow, he didn’t want to divulge the return kiss.


	76. Nostalgic

“How nostalgic. The person who first told him that lover’s joke was Nico Di Angelo.”

Nico Moretti couldn’t help the way his jaw clenched at the name, “Oh?”

It wasn’t like this was surprising. And that certainly was **_NOT_ ** a twinge of jealousy, because he and Grace were not a thing.

Still, it broke his reverie.

“They were very young. And not even dating yet. As much as Jason liked him, he was scared of crossing that line, of losing him by changing the friendship they’d built.” Levesque leaned forward, eyes focused on the flowers, “We were all out doing… _Something_. It was a long time ago. I forget. Probably a picnic.”

“All?”

“The Seven. Plus Nico and Reyna. I doubt Will was there, it was awkward for years after the breakup.”

He knew what “The Seven” meant, and he’d known Di Angelo was frequently associated with them before they attained godhood. He’d even heard of The Augur that became the God of the Underworld, Octavian. He had no idea who this Will and Reyna were, but logically, Reyna might be the “RARA” they seemed to associate with his sister. His mother would love the opportunity to sit down and hear stories like this straight from the New Gods themselves.

“Anyways, we were all hanging out, making small talk. Jason asked if anyone knew what the flowers nearby were, he’d been adorably fascinated with flowers for a month after finding out phasganion flowers were associated with Pluto.” She laughed, leaning back and placing a hand to her face. “Come to think, that all started because he and Percy were trying to figure out how to use flower meanings to send super spy messages as bouquets!”

Nico couldn’t help but smile at that. He could see it in his mind, a younger Jackson and Grace, leaning over a collection of cut flowers with a book, arguing about how to send a secret message. It was an endearing mental image although the matching orange t-shirts were a bit of an odd detail, “Did they ever figure it out?”

Levesque smiled guilelessly at him, “You know? I can’t recall at all. I should ask them!”

“Sounds fun,” He grinned back. This version of her smile was infectious.

“It’ll probably restart the game. Percy might take it as a challenge, and Jason knows flowers so well now,” She trailed off and took a sip of her coffee before continuing the story. “Everyone was surprised we’d run into a flower Jason didn’t know yet, and Nico, _my Di Angelo_ , got the most mischievous grin on his face you could imagine. He turned to Jason and said, ‘Kiss me and I’ll tell you.’ Poor flustered thing, I thought Jason was going to melt down on the spot, because _oh did he want to,_ but he was so afraid of stepping over a boundary. ”

“In the end, he didn’t explain the joke to me until we kissed on the lips, at which point I was the color of a poppy and Hazel there had practically buried herself in Frank’s stomach to stop from laughing out loud at me,” Grace stepped into the room, now wearing a pair of slacks and a navy sweater. “He formally asked me out later that day, complaining about, ‘how dense are you planning to be?’”

The obvious echo of a not quite imitation of the voice of a dead boy hung onto the phrase, although it made Grace and Levesque smile fondly.

“How many times did you kiss him before you finally gave him what he wanted?”

He hadn’t thought about how he’d phrased the question until both gods looked at him with astonished expressions.

Grace blushed slightly and looked away while Levesque started laughing again. Nico found he liked her laugh.

“It’s been a long time,” Grace hedged.

 _Five_ , Nico’s brain supplied automatically.

“It was your first kiss with the man you’re still in love with centuries later. Don’t tell me you don’t remember.”

Grace shoved his hands I his pockets, managing to look more like a normal guy than a god for the first time since he’d met him. It was… adorable.

“His hand. Then his forehead. Once on each cheek.” Grace shook his head smiling as he spoke, “The corner of his mouth, not quite a proper kiss, but closer than I ever thought I’d come back then.”

“And then?”

Grace bit his lower lip, taking a deep breath before raising his eyes to meet Nico’s, “And then he kissed me.”

**_Five._ **


	77. Counting

Nico’s face burned at that revelation. How many times had Grace kissed him now? He’d only kissed Grace the once, but that was the third time Grace had kissed him. Not on the lips, but still, now that precedent would weigh on him. He’d be counting, wondering what to do if one of them reached five. Grace was kind and attractive, and if he’d been a normal guy, Nico might have just gone for it by now. But nothing about this situation was normal.

Levesque’s voice broke through the tension, “Would you like to stay for breakfast?”

“No, umm. Thanks, but I should really get home. I have things to do.”

Grace’s voice was cautious and friendly, “May I escort you home?”

He should say no. He should absolutely say no because spending so much time with these two was doing something to his priorities.

He raised an eyebrow and heard the taunting sarcasm normally reserved for his friends in his voice, “What, flying?”

“I was just thinking of walking you home, but I can certainly oblige if you’d like me to fly you.”

His jaw dropped slightly, “I was joking.”

“It’s just an offer,” Grace smiled warmly. “That’s all.”


	78. Step Forward

“Thank you for spending the evening with us.”

Nico jerked his head up, his wandering brain coming back to the _literal god_ walking beside him as if they were just two regular people circling each other trying to decide whether or not to ask each other on dates. Which, kind of was what they were. Except, y’know, **_god_**. Not just any god, the **_king_** of the gods. He couldn’t get past this.

“No problem. I guess. I mean, sorry for crashing on your couch?”

“Nothing to apologize for.” Grace looked up, and Nico followed his gaze.

“Home sweet home.” He pulled up his sleeve to access the entry chip, but paused when the door slid open. “Grace, what is this? What am I getting myself into?”

“This is me, wanting to get to know who you are now, Nico. Whatever follows,” Nico didn’t miss the aborted motion to reach out and touch him. Grace was holding himself back. He was trying. “If anything follows, we can determine at whatever pace you are comfortable with.”

“Okay.”

Grace smiled, “Call me if you have time later. I’d like to spend more time just you and I.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Please do.”


	79. Walking Alone

He hadn’t really noticed when the park he was walking through got darker.

The sound of yips and growls could easily be people playing with their dogs just out of sight.

That was normal. Expected.

It was a reasonable assumption supported by over two decades of life experience.

The gust of wind shoving him flat to the ground was not.

He fell hard, scraping palms and tearing the knee of one pants leg. When he raised his head to try to figure out what happened, there was only billowing wind and a trio of dark creatures, getting up from bungled landings to turn back towards him.

To call them dogs would be inaccurate, although that seemed the closest approximation. Something in how they were built seemed nonspecifically wrong. An incorrectly assembled model. They were too large, with eyes that glowed like coals, and smelled like rotten eggs. Like sulfur.

They growled, their hackles raising as they stared him down.

His voice was frozen in his throat.

These were monsters. Real monsters straight out of the stories, and there was no way he could move fast enough to get away.

A voice came from behind him, “So they say you’re 'Nico'.”


	80. Another God

Nico was scared to move, even to turn to look at the speaker. The massive dogs had clearly tried to attack him, and it didn’t seem their intentions had changed.

He listened to the sound of shoes crunching over grass until a tall, thin man in a dark suit with pale skin and hair so light a blonde it was nearly white came into view. There were dark circles under the limpid eyes that narrowed as they looked down at him.

“Well, are you?” His oily voice snapped with irritation, “You certainly **_look_** the part.”

Nico’s fingers clenched at the grass, and he grit his teeth, “I’m Nico Moretti.”

The man, most likely a god, turned to look over his shoulders at the dogs as he spoke, “And his name is even ‘Nico’. How romantic.”

He didn’t sound like he thought it was a good thing at all.

“You’re like Grace?”

“Don’t speak to me unless spoken to, Mortal.”

Nico pursed his lips and squeezed his eyes shut. This man clearly wasn’t like the other New Gods. He didn’t know what to do to get out of this safely.

The god paced, dogs growling intermittently

“How dare he appear now...” He whirled on Nico, “What are you doing here now? What do you want?!”

“I,” Nico hesitated. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The god leaned in towards him, radiating menace like cold air, “Don’t pretend you don’t remember me!”

He clutched at the earth turning his face away from the god, wishing he could sink into the ground and escape, “I don’t.”

“DON’T PLAY INNOCENT. _NOT WITH ME._ **_YOU KILLED ME, NICO DI ANGELO._** I HAVEN’T FORGOTTEN.” A hand gripped his hair, yanking him up to meet those cold, almost colorless blue eyes. “WHY HAVE YOU RETURNED NOW?”


	81. Octavian

_**Killed?!** _

Nico’s eyes widened with horror as he stared back at the angry god.

_He was going to die._

This stranger, this god, was going to kill him because he shared a face and a name with some long dead demigod.

The wind rose up again, this time in an angry gale, scattering small white flowers all around. Nico could feel them running over him, tangling in his hair, one smacked the god uselessly in the face.

“TAKE YOUR HANDS OFF OF HIM.”

_Grace!_

The hand in his hair yanked again, testing.

The god’s gaze shifted up, away from Nico, but he didn’t move away a millimeter, “ _Or. **What?**_ ”

“I will take any harm done to that mortal as a personal affront against me.”

The furious look morphed into a sneer, “Oh well, then. Consider me properly chastised, Ruler of the Skies. Oh, King of Gods. I would hate to damage our oh so amicable relationship.”

Nico could hear the gritted teeth behind Grace’s words, “Octavian, don’t.”

Now Octavian stood, dragging Nico up to his knees by the hair as he did, “I am a god too, Grace. And this mortal has  _personally affronted_  me. You would deny me justice?”


	82. Not Him

Panic clawed in Nico’s throat.

He could see Grace now, lightning crackled in tiny arcs up his arms and wind still danced around him, the small white flowers occasionally being picked up and smashed to the ground again. Shadows curled around Octavian’s feet, and the grass was starting to go brown.

What happened if that touched him?

“Di Angelo died centuries ago,” Grace’s voice was calm, despite the other indicators to the contrary. “It would not be justice to hold this man responsible for his actions.”

“Oh, but I thought half the Pantheon was all a flutter because this man **_is_** Di Angelo. Are you saying he isn’t?”

Octavian shook him slightly, and Nico reached up to grab the hand gripping his hair on reflex. He’d never felt so helpless or terrified in his life.

“Don’t touch me,” Octavian’s voice was calm and slow, a warning.

“I’m not Di Angelo,” Nico retorted, biting out a curse when Octavian hauled on his hair again. “I’m not!”

Octavian’s voice was oily, “ _He_ needs to say it.”

 _What?_ Why did it matter if Grace said it, unless…

Nico turned his eyes back on Grace. The god’s eyebrows were furrowed, and his expression pained.


	83. Truth

He was still terrified.

He knew Grace believed he was Di Angelo reborn. The god wouldn’t be interested in him otherwise. None of them would be. He hated it.

But, seeing the anguish in Grace’s expression, he was furious with Octavian. It would mean something significant if Grace said he wasn’t Di Angelo. Whatever it meant, it hurt him deeply to even consider saying it, and that was what Octavian wanted. He wanted to hurt Grace.

“If it’s true, it shouldn’t matter who says it.” Nico’s fingers clenched with nerves where he still gripped Octavian’s hand, “And if it’s wrong, then saying the opposite won’t make it true. The truth doesn’t change like that.”

As much as he wanted Grace to be interested in him for him -- _when had he started wanting that_ \-- he did not want this god to force him to say that. He didn’t want to give this asshole whatever victory it was, and he didn’t want to let him hurt Grace.

“And truth is at the heart of justice, Octavian. It is your job to know that.” Grace raised his chin slightly, “If this mortal accepts that he is Di Angelo, we can revisit your grievance.”


	84. Estimation

Octavian scowled, “I think you overestimate my cooperation here.”

“No,” Grace’s eyes narrowed, flashing with that unnatural light Nico had seen a few times before. “You overestimate my leniency. What mercy do you think there will be to appeal to if you do something rash now, Octavian?”

Octavian made a rude noise, but he released his grip on Nico’s hair. Nico slumped at the sudden loss of pressure, and nearly fell over in his attempt to scrabble away from the god. It wasn’t very dignified, but he was more concerned with surviving this encounter. The dogs still paced menacingly just out of reach.

“I’ll give you more time to play at this game of yours Grace.” Octavian sneered, “It’s been a while since you’ve been so emotional about anything. But don’t mistake my indulging you for fear though. You are the Lord of the Heavens, but all things come to my realm in time. Remember that.”

Grace bared his teeth in a wolfish expression of anger, but made no sound in response.

Octavian turned, stepping away into the shadows to disappear, dogs at his heels.

“Tartarus,” Nico breathed out, trying to regain his feet while still backing up. “That was--"


	85. Reprieve

Hands came to rest on Nico’s arms, helping him to his feet. Grace’s eyes were hard and unnaturally bright, in contrast to the gentle way he brushed dirt from Nico’s clothes. “That was Octavian, God of the Underworld.”

“What does he mean, Di Angelo killed him?”

Grace froze for half a second, “That is complicated.”

“The god of the underworld just threatened to kill me! _Uncomplicate it!_ ”

“Nico,” Grace paused, taking in a deep breath as if to start explaining, but then his expression crumpled and he pulled the smaller man into a hug, resting his forehead against Nico’s shoulder. He went quiet, just holding him as if he were afraid he would break or disappear.

Nico broke the silence, cautiously reaching up to pat Grace’s back and brush a hand through blonde hair, “He didn’t. I’m okay, but it scared me.”

Grace squeezed him a little tighter.

_Not just me, huh?_

“How did you know to come?”

“My Aurae. Several of the breeze nymphs came rushing to me in a panic, carrying Asphodel flowers.” Grace raised his head then and took a step back, giving Nico space, expression a little chastised although his hands remained on Nico’s shoulders, “Sorry.”


	86. Asphodel

Nico cautiously put his hand over one of Grace’s, hoping it would be reassuring. He was fighting back shaking in terror himself.

“Why Asphodel flowers?”

“When some of the younger Aurae are in a panic, they have trouble with using words or staying solid at all. They know I’ll understand flower messages. Asphodel is the name of a place in the Underworld, but the flowers also mean hard feelings that follow someone beyond the grave. The flowers told me Octavian was doing something I needed to interfere with immediately.”

“So you didn’t know it was about me?”

“There was very little chance of it being anything else.” Grace turned his hand beneath Nico’s, intertwining their fingers, “I am so grateful you are safe.”

“Yeah, umm,” Nico faltered. “Thanks for that.”

Grace hummed almost absentmindedly, eyes having gone back to looking Nico up and down for injuries.

“I really need you to tell me why Octavian has it out for me.”

“We should do something about those scrapes, I--”

“I have first aid stuff at my apartment. _Please_ , stop changing the subject.”

“I will. Just... give me a bit to gather my thoughts.”

“You didn’t expect this.”

“Not this reason, no.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Asphodel** is a type of lily and means ‘remembered beyond the tomb’ or 'my regrets follow you to the grave’.


	87. Flower Wars Begin

They ended up back at Nico’s apartment without Grace explaining himself. The adrenaline had worn off, and he was tired. His scraped knee and palms were starting to go stiff on top of being painful and all he wanted to do was get cleaned up, lay down, and take a long nap. _Alone._

He still wanted an explanation, but he was really doubting he’d get one from Grace.

The door whooshed open, and a strong scent of fresh cut greenery reached them. He glanced up at Grace, eyes narrowing in question, “Your Aurae?”

Grace blinked, and shook his head slowly, eyes wide and curious, “They shouldn’t have.”

Together, they stepped into his living room to find several dozen bunches of yellow flowers tied and stacked on every available surface. They were crowned with little spots of red, and looked kind of cheerful.

Nico tentatively reached out to brush the nearest flower, curious what the oddly shaped blooms felt like.

_It might have been a sweet gesture, except there were just a ridiculous amount of them._

Grace’s arm was suddenly around his waist, yanking him backwards against him.

_“What in Tartarus, Grace?!”_

“We’re going to my place.”

_“What? No we’re **not!** **”**_


	88. Bird's-Foot Trefoil

The world seemed to tilt sideways and Nico closed his eyes to fight off vertigo.

When he opened them again, his apartment and the sunny flowers were gone. He stood in a marble room accented by carved pillars and draped swathes of fabric, floor littered with lush pillows and low tables. Grace’s arm around his waist loosened and he stepped away.

“Frank?”

“What the,” Nico turned on Grace, fury overriding pain and exhaustion for a moment. _“Where am I?”_

Grace didn’t answer him, one hand still in contact with Nico’s waist, “Frank?!”

_“You cannot just kidnap people!”_

Grace was clearly distracted with looking for whoever this “Frank” was.

Nico took a step backwards, breaking contact with the god, **_“GRACE!”_**

 This finally brought Grace’s attention back to him.

Nico’s voice was seething, _“Where have you brought me?”_

“My home.” When Nico gestured at the room indicating this was not the hotel suite he’d visited a few days ago, he clarified, “Olympus.”

_“I said **no**.”_

“Your life was in danger.”

“Were the flowers poisonous or something?”

“No.”

“Then how was I in danger?”

“They were a message to me. That he could reach you without my knowing.”

“He?”

“Lotus Corniculatus mean vengeance.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Lotus Corniculatus / Bird’s-Foot Trefoil** is a common flowering plant in the pea family and means ‘vengeance’.


	89. Fai

_Vengeance?_ The yellow flowers suddenly seemed a great deal less cheerful and the spots of red more like blood spatter.

“You think Octavian put them in my apartment. As a threat.”

Grace nodded as an impossibly tall and muscled man entered the room.

He wore an exasperated expression and was speaking the moment he came into view, “How many times do I have to remind you Jason? It’s Fai; I’m not sixteen anymore.”

“Sorry, old habits.”

The man grunted good naturedly, dark eyes turning to survey Grace’s guest. His eyes widened, and his jaw went slack for a moment, “Nico?”

“Uh,” Nico raised a hand sheepishly. “Hi.”

He was enveloped in a bear hug that lifted him from the floor and squeezed the air from his lungs.

Grace’s tone was more embarrassed than alarmed, “Fai, wait!”

“Oh, are we back to the ‘no touching’ thing?”

He was set back down, coughing only a little before finishing the greeting, “I’m Nico Moretti. What ‘no touching’ thing?”

Fai looked between Nico and Grace, confused but evaluating the situation, “Jason, tell me you didn’t.”

“Depends on what you think I’ve done.”

Nico was irritated, “Didn’t what?”

Fai pinched the bridge of his nose.


	90. Your Rule

“If he doesn’t remember anything, you shouldn’t have brought him to Olympus, Jason.” Fai sounded tired, “He might not be our Nico. Even if he is, he might not **_want_** to remember being our Nico. That was your idea, remember? Consent?”

“This is different.”

The look Fai gave Grace was withering, “I’m sure Clarisse will appreciate that next time Silena reincarnates.”

Grace had the sense to look chastised, “Fai, I called you because he’s hurt. Would you please?”

Fai looked back to Nico, finally seeming to notice the dirty clothes and jeans stained with blood around a ripped knee. He sighed, “Can you sit down?”

Nico nodded, looking around before sinking onto a soft pile of dark colored cushions.

The humungous god knelt next to him, moving slowly and carefully, “Doesn’t look bad to me, but no reason I can’t patch you up since you’re here. I need you to give me your hands.”

Nico presented his hands, palms up, displaying the darkening bruises and abraded skin for inspection.

“Ouch,” Fai said sympathetically, gently taking both Nico’s hands and radiating a soothing warmth via the contact. “I should introduce myself. I’m Fai Zhang, god of the sun, hearth, and healing.”


	91. Filling In

Nico smiled, “Not Frank.”

Fai chuckled warmly, “Sometimes Frank. It was a nickname when I was younger and foolishly embarrassed of my heritage.”

“As a demigod?”

“As a Chinese-Canadian.” He released Nico’s hands, which now showed no signs of injury, “There. That should feel better.”

“Thank you, Fai.”

“You’re welcome, Nico.” He tilted his head to the side, “Are you okay with being called Nico?”

“Yeah. It’s my name.”

“That’s unusual.”

“You meet a lot of reincarnated friends?”

“Over time.” Fai sat back on another pile of pillows as Grace joined them. “Did Jason really bring you here over a few scrapes?”

“No,” Jason’s reply was petulant as he scooted closer to Nico.

Fai’s tone was indulgent, “Didn’t ask you, Jay.”

“Well, Octavian kind of attacked me.” Nico looked down at his unmarked palms, “No. I don’t know if that’s right. These monster dogs knocked me to the ground and he threatened me, but I guess he didn’t really do that much physically. It was more frightening than anything else.”

“Hellhounds,” Fai said darkly, looking to Jason. “You stopped him?”

Jason nodded.

“I’d count that as an attack, Nico.” Fai rubbed his chin, “But why?”

“Supposedly, revenge for his death.”


	92. Seems Like A Trick

Fai’s previously gentle face now contained enough anger it was nearly unrecognizable. It had slowly stormed over as Grace relayed the details of the encounter with Octavian and what had been waiting in his apartment afterwards.

“Nico didn’t kill him. Octavian knows that.”

“I thought so as well, but his actions today indicate otherwise.”

“Wait, Di Angelo didn’t kill him?”

“No,” Fai ran a hand thorough his hair. “Nico didn’t stop him when Octavian’s own actions were about to kill him, but by that standard, Will and Mike could also be held responsible.”

Grace’s voice was low, “Will and Mike aren’t here. Nico is.”

“I can’t help but feel this is about something else, Jay.”

“Why would it matter if Grace said I wasn’t Di Angelo?” Nico ducked his head when both gods turned to him. “As opposed to just me saying it. What’s the difference?”

Fai narrowed his eyes, “Jay is a god. The  ** _King_**  of the Gods.”

Nico tilted his head and gestured with empty hands. _That clarified nothing for him._

“My decree is binding law. If I swore that you were not, no god could accept you as Di Angelo, regardless of facts.”

“Why would Octavian care?”


	93. The Question

“Apparently that’s the trillion-dollar question,” Nico sighed to Reyna over the phone. “None of them know why Octavian would be so adamantly against the pantheon accepting me as Di Angelo. Octavian might not like the guy, but it should be pretty irrelevant to him.”

“Can’t you just ask Grace to make the decree and save everyone a lot of trouble while making you safe?”

“He refuses, especially while he doesn’t know Octavian’s motivation.”

“Meaning he wouldn’t do it even if not for Octavian pushing for it.” Reyna sounded tired, “It would mean he’d have to stop pestering you, wouldn’t it?”

“He’s says that’s not it, but I think that it would make it more difficult for him to justify pursing, whatever this is, since him approaching me in the first place was based on that assumption.”

She made an angry noise, “That’s definitely a big part of it, and I’m not sure I’d trust him on the entire making that declaration doesn’t mean he’d have to leave you alone.”

“I don’t think he’d just completely lie to me like that.”

She snorted, clearly not agreeing, “Neeks, are you starting to fall for him?”

It was his turn to groan, “Reyna...”


	94. Want

“Are you free?”

Nico blinked, the god on his doorstep wasn’t exactly a surprise, in person check-ups had become a near daily occurrence on top of the watching Aurae. Only, he hadn’t expected Fai Zhang.

He smiled indulgently, a picture of gentle patience despite his bulk, “I’m intruding.”

“Ah, um, No! I mean, yes, but not really!” Nico scratched the back of his neck, “I was just about to take a study break, why don’t you come in?”

Fai nodded politely and ducked slightly has he came through the doorway. They had been situated in Nico’s living room with coffee for a few minutes before they got past the basic pleasantries.

“Tell me if I’m overstepping, but I came here to ask what you wanted out of all of this.” He narrowed his eyes at the coffee, but not in a way that seemed angry, “If you wanted any of this.”

“This?”

“You know what I mean. The attention would be a lot to deal with even if you did return the interest the pantheon has been showing in you, but if you don’t, I imagine it’s quite oppressive.” He paused, “It is okay to not be interested, you know.”


	95. Not Looking

Nico bit his lip, looking at his fingers as he twisted an antique silver ring nervously.

“I’ve sent the Aurae away, you can talk without fearing he’ll get a report.”

Nico’s head jerked up to meet Fai’s gaze, eyes wide, “I didn’t know you could do that.”

“Oh, he’ll be irritated with me, but his protectiveness has forgotten to be considerate of your privacy.”

“No kidding,” Nico muttered, dropping back into the couch as a weight lifted from his shoulders.

“Well Nico, what do you want out of this?”

“I don’t want to die,” He answered sourly.

Fai let him be silent for a while before prompting, “And?”

The ring went upside down, face turned away from him.  He didn’t look at Fai. _No eyes on him._

“He’s driving me up a wall with the overprotection, and the touching without thinking about it or asking permission.” Nico sighed at his hands, “And the backing off. I—I can’t know what it’d be like when he’s so skittish! I just—don’t know.”

“I think you do.” Fai’s voice was kind, “I was worried that Hazel and Jason were so invested and it wasn’t returned, but it seems that isn’t the case.”


	96. Don't Walk Away

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double length update for Saturday. I'm aiming to do regular M-F updates, but I'm updating this weekend because of tumblr's Jasico Week.

“I don’t know what you mean.” Nico closed one hand into a fist briefly, still staring at it, “They're all hung up on me being Di Angelo, expecting me to act like him, but I'm not that person. I'm just me. No matter how nice they—all of you are, no matter how attractive I find Grace, it's not really mutual, is it?"

Fai hummed, "You have a lot invested in the idea that everyone's expecting you to be just like the Nico we lost three centuries ago. We don't. We believe you share a soul, and that soul connects us. But Nico Moretti, you are the newest iteration of that soul, not the exact same person, and that's why Jason and Hazel are so conscious that your acceptance of their affection isn't guaranteed."

"If I'm a new person, why is Ja—Grace so certain he'll love who I am now?"

"Soulmates."

"That's not a real thi—“

"That's not something visible when one doesn't live long enough to meet again, but it is real. We've seen it." He paused briefly, “And yes, it is easier for us to see and accept because of what we are.”

“No pressure or anything.”

Fai chuckled warmly at that, “It is a lot of pressure, both for those who remember and those who don’t. I came here to make sure you had the opportunity to walk away if that was what you really wanted, but I must admit I’m relieved to know that isn’t the case.”

“I didn’t say it wasn’t,” Nico still couldn’t bear to look up from his fidgeting hands, twisting the silver skull ring on his finger again and again.

“Lying to yourself isn’t going to help you figure things out Nico, and you might end up hurting everyone if you keep that up, including yourself.” The god let out a resigned sigh, “I do not want to see Hazel get hurt again.”

“Again?”

“That’s not my tale to tell, but she has a gentle heart. You are among a very short list of people who can break it easily.”

“I thought you were okay with me walking away from this if I wanted to?”

“I am, and if it is the case, I’d rather you do it sooner than later.” Fai’s hand landed on his shoulder, “But after talking, I don’t think you actually want to walk away.”

“I don’t.”


	97. Artifact

“That’s all I needed to know.” Fai leaned in closer, the motion making Nico finally look up and then pull backwards. Fai’s stare was suddenly intense in a brand-new way, dark eyes flashing with that checked godly power he’d seen in the others. The unnatural weighty feeling of a god’s focus was closing in around him.

Nico heard the shaking in his own voice, “What?”

“Nico Moretti, where did you get  _that_ ** _ring_**?”

He had to think about it. He’d had it so long, even though he hadn’t worn it regularly for years, “My Mother. It’s an antique or something. She gave it to me for my thirteenth birthday.”

Fai’s tone was urgent, concerned, “Have you worn it around Jason or Hazel?”

“No…”

“Don’t.” He stepped back, looking around the room as if expecting the Aurae to have returned or for Grace to appear, “I have no idea how your Mother came into possession of it, but I’ll be looking into it.”

“Wait. Why? It’s just an old silver ring. I’ve had it for years and years.”

Fai looked troubled, “That ring is— _significant_.”

“How—” Nico furrowed his brows, “It’s some sort of godly artifact, isn’t it?”

“Not from us.”


	98. Silver Skull Ring

Nico stared uneasily at the skull ring, turning it over and over again in his fingers. The worn edges and cool metal were a familiar touchstone. His Mother had given it to him well over a decade ago now, telling him it was something she couldn’t confirm the age of but was supposed to be for protection. He’d known it was old, and it made him feel better, so he wore it when he felt he’d needed extra protection. He’d dug it out of the back of his dresser about a week after Octavian’s threat.

He hadn’t worn it around the gods because with the skull and the signet styling of it, he didn’t want to give them the wrong impression about him accepting all this Di Angelo business. Now Fai had told him not to wear it for an entirely different reason.

He’d been guessing with the “godly artifact” question. Fai had seemed too troubled by it, and the suggestion had come naturally. Fai hadn’t actually said yes before leaving, but “ _not from us_ ” had him nervous.

Was it something made by the old gods?

Who had it belonged to?

He both did and did not want ask Grace.

 


	99. First Date

“You’re coming home for the Winter Solstice, right?”

He huffed into the phone, “Of course, Mom!”

Grace perked with interest as he returned to the café table with their drinks.

“Bringing any guests home this year?” Nico had to avoid grimacing at her tone, “Reyna made it sound like you have some boy she really doesn’t approve of lined up.”

"I," He met Grace's eyes uneasily. The god watched him like an excited puppy, "I wasn't planning on it."

"I'm not going to assume you're getting hitched just because you bring someone home, Sweetie."

“I know that.”

“But?”

“I’ll think about it, okay?”

“Sounds good. Have you booked your flights yet? Do you want me to--”

“I’ll get it done. Soon. Listen, I gotta go. I’m out with people.”

“With people, or on a date?”

“Mother...”

“Fine, don’t tell me,” She laughed. “Have fun! I love you!”

He hung up to find Grace still smiling at him, but with one eyebrow raised.

“What?”

“I was under the impression this was a date.”

Nico blushed, pocketing his phone, “First date. I’m not telling my Mother that.”

Grace chuckled warmly, leaning in closer, “Understandable.”

“So what’s the plan, oh king of gods?”


	100. Bothering

Grace’s hand slipped out of his as the god stopped walking and he continued.

He didn’t want to acknowledge it at first. It could mean a lot of things of course, but part of him assumed Grace had finally realized he wasn’t that much like Di Angelo after all and was disappointed with that reality. He shouldn’t be upset by the thought, but he was.

“Nico,” Grace’s voice was gentle, and Nico stopped in his tracks, not turning around. “You’ve been quiet. What’s bothering you?”

He bit his lip.  _What **wasn’t**  bothering him?_

He didn’t catch the intervening moments when Grace returned to his side, only found arms wrapping around his waist tentatively, leaving the option for him to pull away. He just ducked his head down, avoiding blue eyes as the weight of Grace’s complete focus wrapped around him.

“You can talk to me.”

He decided to go with the most immediate subject, “How far is Octavian willing to follow on that threat?”

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“My Mom. The holiday. I don’t want to bring  ** _that_**  home.”

“I will not let Octavian interfere with your time with your family.”

“How? Going to follow me home?”

“Yes.”


	101. Not Invited

“I  _did **not**_  invite you to my family holiday.”

Grace’s arms loosened around him, “You did not, and you will not see me. I will just be nearby to ensure nothing happens.”

“Were you going to tell me about this?”

“I did not want to impose on you.” Grace sighed and his head dropped next to Nico’s stopping just short of resting on his shoulder, “I just wish to allay your fears.”

“You’re really  _trying_  not to overstep, aren’t you?”

“I think I have perhaps lost sight of the appropriate lines,” He paused uneasily. “Having been what I am now. My reach is so different. Perspective is— _difficult_. Frank chastised me about it.”

Nico’s thumb worried over the spot where he would have worn the silver skull ring. He wanted to know what its story was that it had alarmed Fai. He didn’t want to ask Grace. “I appreciate that you’re trying.”

Grace chuckled, his breath ghosting over Nico’s collarbone, “But failing miserably, huh?”

Nico couldn’t help the smile that came to his lips, “Little bit.”

He felt Grace shift against him, and knew the god was trying to look to see the smile that accompanied his change in tone.


	102. Fondness

He turned to look back and found his smile widening in response to the way Grace’s face lit up to see him smile.

He couldn’t explain this fondness. How easy it was to be comfortable in his arms. Fai might have said _“soulmates.”_ He didn’t want to think about that. He liked that he could make Grace smile. He liked seeing him smile. Wasn’t that enough?

“Grace.”

The arms around his waist tightened, pulling his back flush against Grace’s chest, “Jason. Please.”

“Hmm. Tell me something I don’t already know about you.”

Grace’s eyebrows rose with interest, “That’s tricky. I don’t know what stories you know and don’t.”

“That’s the point. Tell me something personal. Something that wouldn’t make it into the stories.”

Grace was silent for a long moment, then his eyes crinkled with an old affection, “My favorite food is still the brownies from a bakery in New Rome.”

“New Rome? That tourist trap?”

He chuckled, “It wasn’t always a tourist trap. It was the home of the 12th Roman Legion. I grew up there.”

“I know, but still? Brownies from _there_?”

“The shop closed ages ago, but yes.”

“How do you know they’re still your favorite then?”

“Ambrosia.”


	103. Eating Habits

Nico had been fascinated by the concept of Ambrosia once explained to him, then disappointed once he learned that, being entirely mortal, he couldn't try it.

The distraction of discussing it had helped, and they walked together easily past a collection of old-fashioned storefronts. Antique-looking copycats of long defunct stores like Burning Topic and Barns & Honorable lined the street. The stores were probably from back when Grace was human—or a demigod at least.

“I’m sure it’s easy for you to get whatever your favorite food is all the time anyways,” Grace assured. “I kind of lucked out, the texture of Ambrosia doesn’t change with the taste, so it can be a bit odd sometimes.”

“I take it it’s a pastry then?”

“Yes, a dense one, so it’s not far off from brownies to begin with.” He laughed, “Clarisse’s is some sort of fancy ham, and she assures me that the taste and texture aren’t a good match.”

Nico winced in sympathy, “That’s not all you eat though, right?”

“Thankfully not. It would get old rather quickly.”

“Did the old gods eat things other than Ambrosia too?”

Grace frowned deeply at that, “They were very different from us.”


	104. Old Gods

Nico winced. He had upset Grace unintentionally before, but this was a different. This wasn’t Grace fearing he’d stepped too far and fearing rejection or mourning for a person Nico couldn’t be. There was anger in the tightened line of his jaw, and it wasn’t protective.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought that up.”

“No,” Grace visibly forced his shoulders to relax. “The truth is I don’t know what the old gods ate other than Ambrosia, if they did. They didn’t care about their children unless we were actively being useful to save their hides or suffering for their entertainment. They didn’t spend time with us, and generally left us, and our mortal parents, to fend for ourselves against monsters that were drawn to the smell of demigods.”

Nico’s heart tightened at that. It was unimaginable. The gods he knew were so adamant about handling monsters themselves, he hadn’t known they weren’t exceedingly rare until recently. Known demigods were few, but led charmed lives as celebrities, visibly doted upon by their godly parents.

He reached up, pulling Grace into a hug, “I’m sorry. You deserved better.”

Grace’s voice was tight, “We try to be better than they were.”

“You are.”


	105. Father

Grace carefully pulled back, fingers intertwining with Nico’s as he straightened, “I shouldn’t speak ill of the dead. They can’t defend themselves, and some were more caring and involved than others.”

“Yours?”

“No.” Jason shook his head, “My father set the rules that encouraged the gods to be distant from us. Hades doted on his children as best he could. He rarely had children, and loved them in his own way.”

“Hades. Di Angelo’s Father?”

“And Hazel’s.” The expression on his face still wasn’t a smile, “He wasn’t a good father, but he tried more than most to support his children. He grieved their loss.”

“He was already gone when Di Angelo died though.”

“He was still around when Bianca Di Angelo died.”

“‘Bianca’?”

“Nico’s older sister. Hades loved their mother enough to have two children with her when the big three gods had sworn off having demigod children.” Grace watched him carefully as he continued, “He was enraged when Zeus killed their mother, and when Bianca died young he was devastated and unintentionally cruel to Nico in his grief. They eventually reconciled and were the closest of any demigod child and parent I knew then, but it took years.”


	106. Thalia

Nico looked away uncomfortably at the story, “I never knew Di Angelo had a sister.”

“Not many do.” He rubbed his chin with his free hand, “I’m surprised your mother hasn’t come across Bianca if she studies the old stories.”

“She probably has,” Nico responded confidently. “Just because I don’t know about her doesn’t mean my mother doesn’t.”

“True enough.”

‘Not from us.’ Echoed in Nico’s head. He’d always felt safer when wearing the old silver ring, but if it had come from the old gods and they generally had bad relationships with their demigod children, was it really something protective?

He shivered and sidled closer to Grace, mentally searching for a safer topic, “Do you have any siblings?”

Grace leaned into the contact, and the air around them grew marginally warmer. “Hazel is the closest thing to a sister I have left, but before,” His voice faltered. “Before everything changed, I had an older sister named Thalia. She was amazing.”

“Thalia,” He racked his brain for the familiar name. “The aegis-wielding Huntress?”

“That was her.”

“What happened?”

“When the gods disappeared, she was the first lieutenant of the goddess Artemis. Her god-granted immortality failed, and old wounds killed her.”


	107. Different

“You’ve lost so much.”

“The curse of a long life. The part that makes up for it is that sometimes you get to meet the important people again.”

“Grace—”

“You’re different Nico Moretti, but you are the same soul – the same essence, and there is something to be said for that.”

“Something, huh?”

“You’re kind, despite the difficult position I’ve put you in, and you’re brave in the face of danger. So much the same and yet a very different person.”

“How am I different?”

“More confident. Less pain in your past. Happier and more straightforward. Comfortable with yourself.” Grace chuckled, kissing Nico’s cheek impulsively, “I like it.”

“Good, ‘cause I can’t really change that.”

“I wouldn’t ask you to.” Grace pulled him closer, until their sides were flush together, “Please don’t worry about that.”

“It’s hard to believe a demigod wasn’t confident.”

“Nico Di Angelo had a hard life. I would have taken those burdens from him if I could, but I fell in love with the man who was so unfailingly kind and brave despite the hardships he’d faced.”

“And me?”

“You’re much the same. Even if,” Jason paused. “You are everything I could have hoped for him.”


	108. Pause

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got a convention this weekend, so this will (probably) be the only update this week. M-F updates to resume after July 4th.

When the date ended, Nico found himself sitting on the edge of his bed, toying with the skull ring. It had been weighing on his mind most of the night, but he had managed not to mention it to Grace.

Grace.

Who had kissed him again.

It was only on the cheek, and very briefly, something he wouldn’t have given much thought in any other relationship, but with the flower story in mind, he couldn’t help but wonder if Grace was keeping a tally of those little pecks. That had been number four, right? _Every little detail seemed so much weightier when Grace was involved._

“Who made you?”

He stared at the ring as if it might answer him.

“Are you really for protection?”

The room seemed to get colder.

“Should I be worried about where you came from?”

He was probably just imagining the temperature change though.

“I wonder if Mom knows more about this thing.”

He laid back on the bed, holding the ring up above his head, twisting it in the light as if it might reveal its secrets.

Of course, nothing happened.

“And maybe you’re just an old ring, and Fai freaked me out over nothing.”


	109. Heather

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in getting back to this after the con folks. Here we go again.

Nico carefully took the skull ring off, dropping it into his pocket before stepping out of the door and into the chill of the DC winter. He wasn’t surprised to find Grace waiting for him at the foot of the stairs to his building, stylishly but impractically dressed for the weather, his blonde hair dusted with snowflakes and blue eyes bright as he leaned against the railing.

“Heading out?”

“Aren’t you cold?”

“The sight of you warms me.”

He had gotten used to Grace’s overtures in the weeks since they’d started actually dating. It was endearing, even if a bit silly. He was pretty certain Grace knew it was silly, the way his eyes sparked with contained amusement.

“Sap.”

“Always.” He took Nico’s bag while simultaneously tucking a flower behind his ear in one smooth motion. “You have everything you need?”

“Pretty sure. Anything else I can get at home.” He disentangled the small branch of tiny flowers from his curls, looking at the gift curiously, “What’s this one?”

“White heather. Protection.”

He brushed the flowers carefully with a gloved finger thinking of the hidden ring, “Thank you.”

“You don’t mind me escorting you to the airport, I hope?”

“No.”


	110. Airplanes

The trip to the airport was uneventful, with no sign of Octavian nor any monsters. He didn’t dare to hope the god of the underworld had forgotten him, but that he seemed to have backed off completely was nice. He knew the lack of action had Grace on edge though.

He took his bag back at security, chuckling at Grace’s concerned expression, “You’re the sky god; I think I’ll be fine in a plane for a few hours.”

“I know,” Grace trailed off uneasily, fingers interlacing with his.

“But old habits?”

“Precisely. It is hard to shake the fear of watching you get on a plane.”

Grace had explained this to him, earlier in the week, when his complexion had greened in response to Nico telling him his flight schedule. Centuries ago, Di Angelo and Jackson had been threatened with death if they entered the domain of Jason’s father. They had almost never flown because of that. Grace knew Zeus was gone, but the worry still plagued him all the same.

“I’ll be fine.” He pulled their entwined hands up, pressing a kiss to Grace’s knuckles, “I trust you.”

He wrapped an around Nico’s waist, pulling him closer, “Thank you.”


	111. Homecoming

They didn’t talk about the fact Grace was going to follow him to Los Angeles. Nico didn’t know if Grace was going to be alone or if the other gods would follow his lead. Nico had pointedly not invited him to his home or family celebrations. They might be dating now, but it wasn’t anywhere near “ _bring home to mom_ ” status. Not for Nico at least.

Besides, Reyna might try to kick his ass if he showed up, and it was supposed to be family time, not stressful. He hoped she wouldn’t find out about Grace even being nearby.

He stepped onto the plane alone, and flew cross-country to his mother’s waiting arms in Los Angeles.

She patted his unruly curls down, glancing around the curbside pickup curiously, “Where’s the boyfriend?”

“I told you Mom, he’s not coming. We only just started dating.”

Her eyes crinkled as she smiled at him, “Ah huh.”

“We talked about this.”

“Plus Reyna doesn’t trust him.”

“It’s not a non-zero factor.”

“You brought me pictures at least?”

He laughed warmly, “I brought you pictures.”

“Good, I’ll have to get all the good stories from you before Reyna comes home then.”

“Probably a good plan.”


	112. Segue

At what point do you tell your mother you’re dating a god?

There was no good way to give his mother a detailed account of how he met Grace. He told her that it had started by Grace hitting on him at his favorite café, but he couldn’t give her the content of the actual conversation without explaining to her who Grace was or why the god was interested in him. He wasn’t ready for that conversation. Especially not with his mother, who studied the New Gods as a career.

He hoped Reyna would play along with the don’t-tell-Mom plan.

He fidgeted the skull ring out of his pocket as he loitered around the kitchen while she made coffee.  Fai still hadn’t come back with any news on the ring. He should ask her about it.

How do you segue into asking your Mom where she found a ring you’d had for over a decade? Would she even remember it?

“Oh, you still have that!”

He glanced up quickly, meeting her eyes as she offered him a cup, “Of course, you gave it to me.”

“I’ve given you many things Duckling, but still, I’m glad you held onto that one.”


	113. Origin Story

“I can’t really remember, where did it come from?”

“The museum.” She took a long sip of her coffee, considering the question, “NHM? No, I think I was still with Hammer back then.”

“They didn’t mind you taking it home?”

She shook her head, “I’d just come back from nearly a three month trip to Italy. You and Reyna were both furious with me, and I missed my darlings. The ring was an antique trinket, not historically valuable by the museum’s standards, and destined to collect dust on some back shelf catalog until they sold it off to free up space. I talked my boss into naming a price on it and just letting me go ahead and buy it from the museum. Same for your sister’s bracelet, although it was from a different trip the year before.”

His voice was teasing as he raised an eyebrow at her, “Sounds shady.”

“I’m your mother, be respectful.” She chuckled though, “Probably a little bit, but it was all documented and they could look me up if they decided it was valuable after all. It’s been long enough, I think I’m safe.”

“It’s just an antique then?”

“I was thinking family heirloom.”


	114. Family Heirloom

“The ring is related to our family?” He felt his heart speed up with excitement. “You never mentioned that! You just said it was for protection.”

“All family traditions start somewhere, Duckling. A mother’s gift to her son is a family thing.”

“Oh. Right. Of course.”

“You’re disappointed.” She tilted her head, scrutinizing his expression. “It is a very old ring. Stories varied as to whether it was for protection or haunted. Did it  ** _do_**  something?”

Nico shook his head, the ring hadn’t done anything, except excite a god who thought it looked like something else. “Just a ring.”

"Okay." She was silent for a long moment, "You like it though?"

He slipped it on his finger, twisting until it settled into place, "Yeah. I love it, Mom."

"I'm glad." She sidled over next to him, pulling him into a sideways hug. “I’m glad both of my birds are returning to the nest for a few days. I’ve missed you.”

Nico squeezed back, “Nowhere else I’d rather go for the holiday.”

“Not even the hot boyfriend?”

“Mom!”

“Where’s my pictures? I couldn’t look in the car.”

He laughed, pulling up a couple of images of Grace on his Tac device.


	115. Mother Daughter Chat

“You’re a specialist in studying the New Gods,  _so what_ , the name  _ **‘Grace’**_  didn’t ring any alarm bells for you?”

“He hasn’t decided to tell me yet.”

Reyna rubbed her temple, “Which is all the more concerning, Mom. He tells you everything.”

“He tells  ** _you_**  everything, My Sparrow.” Gina Moretti patted her daughter’s hand placatingly, “He only tells me most things. He’ll tell me who Grace is eventually.”

“But you already knew?”

“I suspected, yes. It’s not as though I’ve met him.”

“You don’t want to.”

“I think that’s between Grace and me, little one.”

Reyna chuckled, shaking her head, “Leave it to you to think you could intimidate a god.”

“The king of the gods,” She corrected smoothly. “And knowing you Sparrow, leave it to any woman of this family to  ** _know_**  she can intimidate the gods.”

They laughed together, sipping wine.

“He did choose to date Grace?” Gina’s tone made it a question, worried without quite sounding it.

“He says he did.”

“You don’t sound convinced.”

“Being around them was strange. I can’t really explain it. It was too easy to feel natural interacting with them. It makes me worry.”

Gina hummed thoughtfully, looking up to the moon.


	116. Update

“Hello Nico.”

Nico wasn’t expecting it when Fai showed up in the grocery store, two aisles over from where his mother and sister were inspecting the different meat options for dinner.

“What are you doing here?” He glanced furtively back down the aisle, assuring himself that his family wasn’t coming to check on him, “This is California, you’re all supposed to be in DC!”

Fai raised both eyebrows, mild confusion written across his face, “Jay is here.”

“Grace.” Nico hissed acidly, “Is being purposely unobtrusive. I haven’t seen him at all, and more importantly, my family hasn’t seen him! I don’t want things to get weird for them!”

“I am not asking for an introduction. I have no intention of intruding.”

“If Reyna sees you, it’s going to take about five seconds for her to figure out what you are!”

“Ah yes,” Fai’s eyes danced up and towards the end of the aisle, thankfully still clear of the Moretti women. “Percy did mention that Praetor Ramirez had been reborn as your sister.”

There was no point in arguing about reincarnation misidentification now, “Why are you here?”

“I was able to track down the ring’s history. It is Di Angelo’s ring.”


	117. Ring's Journey

Nico wanted to scream.

Screaming was not appropriate for a grocery store.

Screaming would bring his mother and sister looking for him, and he did not want them to know the sun god was chatting with him in the canned foods aisle.

Fai didn’t actually deserve to be screamed at.

“You’ve got to be kidding me," He hissed. "How can it be Di Angelo’s ring?!”

“That part is somewhat complicated.”

“Didn’t Grace or Levesque  ** _keep_**  something like that?!”

Fai shook his head, “We believed it buried with Nico Di Angelo, centuries ago. It seems it was unearthed during some reconstruction efforts in Italy, passed through a family for a couple of generations, then into an anthropological collection for the region and to your Mother’s hands.”

Nico dragged a hand over his face, “So much of Italy was messed up by the war and those monsters…”

“Precisely.”

“And that means Di Angelo’s grave was probably destroyed back then too.”

Fai nodded, “Possibly. It’s possible the ring was with a branch of the Di Angelo family. We had lost track of it.”

“So, what? You want me to hand over the ring?”

“No. It seems only right that you hold it now.”


	118. Obfuscation

Nico stared.

It was Di Angelo’s ring. The demigod. The son of the old god of the underworld. Grace’s lover. Supposedly, his past life.

He had been wearing Di Angelo’s ring for more than a decade.

“Is there anything I should know about it?”

“How do you mean? You said that you’ve had it for years, yes?”

That wasn’t an answer.

“Does it have any weird demigod powers I should know about or something?”

“Has anything happened to give you that impression?”

Still not an answer. _Dammit._

“Who made the ring, Fai?”

Fai sighed, looking away uncomfortably, “I am not good at this.”

“At lying?”

“Obfuscation.” His face went through more complex emotions before he answered, “The ring was originally a gift from Hades.”

“Di Angelo’s father? The old god?”

Fai nodded.

“So it has powers of some kind.”

“Not likely.”

“What?”

“Hades was one of the gods to persist the longest, but still, he has been gone for centuries, Nico. His artifacts should be just that. Artifacts of a power long passed from this world.”

“So it’s just a ring.”

“A ring with a great deal of history. I would still ask that you not wear it around them.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it for the week. See you monday, folks.


	119. Alone At Last

“You sure you don’t want to come with us?”

Gina Moretti shook her head, “You two go enjoy the movie, Duckling. I’m not really interested in those violent action films.”

Nico shrugged, and kissed her on the cheek before making a beeline for the car.

Reyna copied the action on her opposite side, “I’ll DM you once we’re out, and you can come meet us for dinner.”

“Sounds like a plan, my birds. See you in a couple of hours.”

She watched the vehicle rise on the magnetic tracks, then speed smoothly down the road and out of sight, taking a moment to marvel at the maglev technology that had eliminated the combustion engines of centuries ago.

“Do you miss the fossil fuel-powered cars?”

No one answered her, and she arched an eyebrow in annoyance.

“Don’t be rude. It’s bad enough to be lurking about the neighborhood without ignoring people when they talk to you.”

There was a shimmer of air, and Grace stepped into view at the edge of the yard, “I meant to be unobtrusive.”

“You aren’t.” She waved a hand at him, “Well, let me have a proper look at you. Come here.”

Grace crossed to her.


	120. Introductions

The woman looked a lot like Nico. Olive-toned skin, piercing almost black eyes, and dark curling hair, although hers held a few strands of grey. She had a spray of freckles across her cheeks and nose that Nico lacked. The family resemblance was unmistakable. It made her feel familiar.

“Hello,” He bowed his head respectfully. “I’m Jason Grace.”

She arched a thick eyebrow, looking him up and down critically, “Gina Moretti.”

“A pleasure to meet you.”

“Same. I have questions, if you have time.”

“For you, I will make time.”

“You mean ‘for Nico.’”

He didn’t hesitate, “I cannot deny that.”

“So did you always look like this, or have you made yourself prettier to attract him?”

“I’ve looked like this for most of the past century at least.” He chuckled, “Maybe a little.”

She motioned for him to lean down, and he obliged. She scrutinized his face for a long minute, “The lip scar is unexpected.”

He felt the shape of his smile change, a little regret leaking in, “It is a memory of my sister. I would not erase it.”

Gina hummed, “The Huntress.”

“Thalia.”

“I remember.”

“Nico mentioned you’re quite the expert on us.”

“No. I  ** _remember_**.”


	121. Not A Joke

Jason took a sudden step backwards, eyes going wide then narrowing with caution, “I think I misunderstand you, Ms. Moretti.”

“Come in for some coffee Jason. We should chat.” She turned, taking brisk steps towards the door, “I’ve wanted to meet you for a  ** _very_**  long time.”

He hesitated before following her inside. Her home was typical for the area, nothing about it looked out of the ordinary. Even the décor barely suggested that she was an expert on the New Gods.

“Sit.”

He sat on one of the stools at the kitchen island, watching her back as she made and poured coffee without talking. She probably knew enough about them to do a decent job of pretending to have been alive then, but why would she? He could certainly unmask such a lie with knowledge of things that were never recorded.

“This is not a joke I appreciate, Ms. Moretti.”

“It’s not a joke.” She set a mug of coffee in front of him before taking the stool opposite, dark eyes narrowed dangerously at him. “I remember Thalia Grace because I met her, however briefly it was. You can call me Gina or Bianca, whatever is easier for you.”


	122. Claim

“You’re claiming to be Bianca Di Angelo.”

She smirked at him, something dangerous in the expression, “You’re claiming to be Jason Grace.”

“I  ** _am_**  Jason Grace.”

“Good. Then tell me, was my little brother happy in the end? With you?”

He stared at her, feeling his throat tighten.  _It could not be._  But, he had never met Bianca Di Angelo.

“Did you love him?”

He tried to make a joke of it.  _He needed it to be a joke._  “It’s a little late for the shovel talk, Bianca.”

“The funny part about this situation is I still have the right to give you the shovel talk, Jason.” She rubbed her face in a weary gesture, sighing, “I have regrets about what happened. I needed to be allowed to be a child, and Nico needed more than I could give him. I thought I was making the best choice for both of us. I thought I could trust the camp and a goddess. I didn’t know then how selfish gods are. I died, and Nico suffered. I saw my little brother’s neglect and pain before I chose rebirth. He could never be happy while he believed I was still an option.”


	123. Need

“I won’t let him suffer to indulge a god’s selfishness again. Not in this life. As his mother, as the woman who was once his sister, I will make sure he is happy and loved this time, and always knows that he is.”

He closed his eyes, covering his mouth as he let his head dip towards the counter.  _If Gina Moretti was really Bianca Di Angelo..._

“You met him after I was gone, Jason. I need to know what his life became, from someone who was there.”

“I-- I like to think he was happy.” He slowly opened his eyes, drifting back to Bianca-- Gina-- Nico’s mother. “Nico had a difficult time trusting people, and it took a war for us to become friends, and longer before we became lovers. I would... I would do anything just to see that smile on his face, but we fought sometimes. Maybe--"

“I’m not looking for storybook romance. I’m not a fourteen year old girl anymore. You’re people. Couples fight.”

Jason shot her a smile he knew was mixed with pain, “I love him. I have missed him every day. I stayed with him for as long as he allowed me to.”


	124. Together

Bianca’s voice was hoarse, “’Allowed you to?’”

“We lived a long life together, even by mortal standards.”

“’Together.’”

He smiled and nodded at the relief in her voice, “It was pancreatic cancer. In his seventies. When the symptoms started to get too bad, he asked to be left alone. Insisted all of us stay away, even Hazel.”

“Even you.”

Jason’s chuckle was a pained noise, “Nico was a force, even then. He still commanded the undead when he wanted to.”

“Do you know why?”

“Yes.” He’d had centuries to regret following Nico’s demands, “We knew we were becoming gods by then, and that he was-- not. Nico didn’t want our last memories to be of him in pain and wasting away when we would live so long. I-- I enforced his wishes on the others.”

He hadn’t realized Bianca had moved until she wrapped her arms around him.

“It was the last thing he asked of me.”

Her hand brushed through his hair in a comforting gesture, not something he had experienced in longer than he cared to think about, “Oh Jason Grace, I did not intend to make you cry.”

“I should not have left him at the end.”


	125. Why

“Is that why you studied the New Gods? To learn what became of your brother?”

“It was a large factor, yes.” Bianca smiled at him. They had cried together, shared happier stories of Nico Di Angelo that only they could know. “I also needed more information to confirm it wasn’t just my imagination running away with me. Bianca Di Angelo rarely made it into any of the histories.”

“No one likes to talk about what happened to you, especially Annabeth and Percy, and they’re…”

“The only ones left alive who really know.” She shook her head, “From what I can recall and what I’ve been able to find recorded, they probably have their own regrets about how that happened.”

“I think so too.” He shook his head, “Nico preferred it to be left alone, so I never pushed for details.”

“You never expected to meet me.”

“No.” He looked around the kitchen, full of warm colors, “When did you know that your son was…”

“The reincarnation of my past life’s brother?” Bianca rubbed her chin thoughtfully, “He was 4. Woke up from a nightmare and came to me, babbling in Italian. Describing Maria Di Angelo’s death as a child would.”


	126. Naming

_Nico had remembered his past life._ There hadn’t been any indication since Jason had met him that he would ever remember being Di Angelo, _but this was—_

“Did you even speak Italian?”

“Thankfully, yes. Although I'd never spoken it around him before then. Can you imagine? A single mother waking up in the middle of the night to her horrified child crying and talking in a language she didn’t speak? That would have been awful. Bad enough my baby dreamed of a godly murder attempt on his entire family.”

“I’m sorry...”

“For what your asshole father did before you were born?” Bianca waved a dismissive hand, “Not on you.”

“Then naming him Nico?”

“Was a few factors. It’s a nice name, and I’ve always been fond of it. But, I also lived most of my life with memories of a brother I never knew exactly what happened to,” She tugged her bangs self-consciously. “A lot of people name their children in honor of family members. That was most of it. I never expected my son to be his reincarnation.”

“Understandable.”

“He used to trail after me like a baby duck,” She sighed. “Now he’s nervous to tell me about you.”


	127. Bianca

“I’m sure he’ll tell you eventually.”

“My turn for a question.” Bianca looked away, “Why do ** _I_**  remember? Everything I’ve found says the River Lethe should have prevented my recalling Bianca.”

“I think it’s because of whatever happened to the old gods. Artifacts largely lost power in the aftermath. More quickly for things they didn’t particularly care about. It took decades before the Huntresses’ immortality failed. Remembering past incarnations is difficult even without the Lethe, but it is possible now, under the right circumstances.”

“Because Hades is gone.” Bianca tapped her chin, scrutinizing him, “You really didn’t expect us to turn up together?”

“It’s rare. Reyna was a surprise too.” He hesitated, “Her name?”

“Nico was traveling with me overseas, at an orphanage. He was 5 and she was 8. They instantly bonded, and he was calling her Reyna even though that wasn’t her given name. I put two and two together, and made arrangements to adopt her.”

“Does she know?”

“That I changed her name after adopting her? Yes. I told her it was a Moretti family name.”

“I meant about you. About Nico. Herself.”

“Nico and Reyna don’t know, nor do I want them to. Especially about me.”


	128. Family

"Why wouldn't you tell them?"

"Why  ** _would_** I?" Bianca shook her head, "I have been Gina Moretti longer than Bianca Di Angelo really lived, stopped time notwithstanding. Bianca may have more historical significance, but I have lived a more valuable life, Jason Grace. I am among the top of my field, and I have raised two beautiful, clever children. Why would I want them to doubt that I loved them for any reason other than exactly who they are? Bianca may have been the thread that brought my family together, but my family is built on who they are now."

Jason had the good sense to look chastised.

"I know you want them to remember, and Nico might one day, but if they're not enough without those memories, you need to walk away."

Jason met her eyes, "He is enough."

"Good. Don't forget that."

"I will not."

She picked up both of their mugs, placing them in the sink, "I need to go meet them for dinner soon."

Jason nodded, "Bianca?"

"Yes?"

"I would like to talk again sometime. To get to know you better."

"I would be up for that.” She smiled gently, “We're family too, in a way."


	129. Indulgence

Nico stepped away from the counter to wait for his order. The bakery was his mother’s favorite, and he was picking up a cake to surprise her with tonight.

There was a tap on his shoulder, and he spun around, half-fearing Octavian, but mostly expecting it to be a high school friend. 

_It was neither._

Jason Grace stood in the small bakery, wearing a t-shirt and jeans, looking almost mortal, and smiling uncertainly at him.

“Hi.”

“What are you doing here?” He looked around nervously, “Did something happen?”

“No, I,” The god blushed. “I just missed you.”

“I thought you’d spent the last week watching from the shadows?”

“It is not the same as talking with you.”

He couldn’t help smiling at that.  _It was endearing._  It also worked against his fears of Grace only being interested in the shadow of Di Angelo he saw in him.

He pulled Grace down with a hand on his shoulder, kissing his temple. Blue eyes sparked, that smile he liked best stretched across Grace’s face, and cheeks flushed.

“That’s sweet. Should I buy you a brownie?”

Grace wrapped an arm around his waist and shook his head, “Indulge me a minute or two?”


	130. Tastes

Nico laughed against Grace’s shoulder, but shifted so he was more comfortable, looking around the shop trying to find something to talk about.

“I’d ask how your Solstice was going, but I suppose watching my family means there isn’t really anything I don’t already know about.”

Grace hummed noncommittally.

Nico glanced up at him, hoping for inspiration and noted his skull ring sitting openly on the finger resting on Grace's shoulder.  _CRAP. That was not the chat he wanted to have right now. Maybe ever._  He shifted his hand further back, past where Grace might easily catch the ring at the corner of his vision.

Grace only responded to the movement by tightening his hold around Nico’s waist, “So what brought you to this shop?”

“It’s my mother’s favorite. They do accurate old Italian recipes. She’s a sucker for them.”

“I’ll have to keep that in mind. What’s your favorite?”

“Here? Or in general?”

“Both.”

“Here, the sfogliatella. In general, probably bolo de rolo?”

“You sound uncertain.”

“I traveled with my mom sometimes. I’ve tried a lot of different foods, and they all have their own things going for them.”

“How diplomatic.”

“You like brownies best, don’t criticize.”

Grace laughed.


	131. Be

Nico self-consciously shoved the ring hand into his pocket as soon as the chance arose and kept it there. Fai hadn’t noticed him wearing it initially so he doubted Grace would unless it was in his face, but wearing it while they were together like this seemed to be tempting fate.

They were exiting the shop, box of dessert in hand when Grace paused, “I’ve angered you.”

“What?”

“I have overstepped too far, breaking my agreement to not approach you here.”

“I didn’t say that.” Nico turned on him, “I said it was sweet. Why do you think something’s wrong?”

“You seem hesitant to touch.”

“I, ah…” Box in one hand, ring on the other and industriously shoved in a pocket.  _Dammit._  “It’s not like that.”

“Did something happen?”

“Not… really.”

“Is it something you can’t talk to me about?”

Nico sighed heavily, stepping back towards Grace so he could place his forehead against his shoulder, “I don’t know anymore.”

Grace’s head dipped until his nose was buried in Nico’s curls while he cautiously wrapped arms around him, “I’ll be whatever you need me to be.”

Nico scowled, “I need you to be you. Otherwise what’s the point?”

“...You’re right.”


	132. Why Don't You Talk

“How do you even doubt that?” Nico muttered against his chest. “All this business about how you’re going to like me for who I am now. All this soulmates crap and how it’s meant to be that we’re drawn to each other, and you’re willing to not be yourself for me? That wouldn’t be fair. If I don’t like you for you, why would we be together? What in Tartarus is wrong with you?”

All around him, he felt Grace start to tremble slightly. He began to speak but stopped several times, the syllables failing to materialize, “I know. I know you’re right.”

Nico pressed closer and Grace’s arms tightened, “But?”

“I’m afraid, Nico.” He took a deep breath and lifted his face, “Terrified really.”

“Of me?”

“Of being rejected. Of losing you.” Nico looked up to meet blue eyes that were dull storm clouds instead of their normal electric shade. “I feel both ancient and very young when I’m with you. I know your life is short, and I’ve lost you to death before. It is a bone deep and tiring fear I'll always hold. At the same time I feel young again, excited and afraid of the new.”


	133. Talk To Each Other

Nico shifted then, pulling his hand out of his pocket, ring be damned, and wrapping it around Grace in a hug, "What's so exciting about a mortal boyfriend?"

“I could light up the sky every time you smile at me, but it’s hard to imagine I have the power to do so when all I want is to be Jason.” A slow smile began to grow on his face, “I  ** _feel_**  like I’m just Jason again. A foolish young man, head over heels for the man with dark curls, sharp eyes, and a sharper tongue.”

Nico chuckled, "You were a demigod."

"Yes," Grace spoke warmly. "Son of the king of the old gods and nearly everyone treated me differently, until Nico. For the first time in as long as I could remember, I was just Jason to someone.”

Nico tightened his hold around Grace’s waist, thinking about his continuing refusal to call him Jason.

“You’re not so different in that, you know?” He seemed to be exuding warmth in the chilly December air, and smiled at Nico’s arched eyebrow. “Since we first met, you were willing to talk back, to disagree, to worry, to treat me like a person.”

“Oh.”


	134. Second Time

He’d known he was overstepping normal god/human boundaries. He’d hesitated at them. Worried over them. He’d still done it, because when he looked at Grace, he just couldn’t bring himself to do otherwise. He was a god, but he had been a person once. Obviously, still was one.

_Was it really so strange to see that?_

There was a loud rumbling noise and the sound of a yelp that dragged Nico’s focus away from Grace’s returning smile. The god’s grip around him suddenly became hard, and he heard electricity crackle as he turned to see what was happening.

Levesque stood nearby, wearing jeans and an oversized sweater with a comical skull in a red hat. Her hair was in those black and gold braids again, arms outstretched into clenched fists, face twisted into a mask of fury. Before her, a dozen bars of metal jutted up through the road, two impaling a hellhound, while two more hounds paced just beyond.

Her voice was cold, “What were you doing?”

“I didn’t,” Grace started.

“Obviously!”

His brows knit dangerously, and he lifted one hand in the direction of the hounds, calling down a lightning bolt “They would not have touched him.”


	135. Last Straw

“Once you noticed,” Levesque snarled. “When would  _that_ have been?”

“No,” Nico wanted to shrink away from all of this.  _This was his hometown. His home. His family… **HIS FAMILY.**_ “Mom. Reyna.”

Neither god seemed to be paying attention to him. They glared at each other, the remaining hellhound, and searched the area for more threats.

“Grace!” Nico pulled backwards, trying to break his grip. “My mom and Reyna! What if they--?”

“We’ll check on them in a moment,” Grace promised, eyes still scanning the street.

Nico saw it when Octavian materialized from a shadow, stepping up to place a hand on the remaining hellhound, “Blessed Solstice.”

The sight of the pale god made Nico’s blood boil. He needed to know his family was safe.  _ **Now.**_ What had he ever done to deserve this, except look like some guy who died forever ago? He hadn’t done anything to this asshole, but he was threatening him, his family, his boyfriend…

“Fuck off,” Nico pulled away from Grace with a snarl, somehow managing to still hold the bakery box safely.

Octavian raised an eyebrow, “Excuse me?”

“Not excused,” He growled back, an echo of his mother in it. “You are  ** _not_**  excused.”


	136. Snap

“Mortal, you will watch how you speak to—“

“Why should I?” Nico took two steps forward, “I’ve done nothing to you, but you show up attacking me. Threatening me. Completely unprovoked. I’m trying to have a nice Solstice with my family and you thought you’d what? Come kill me? How dare you step foot into  ** _this_**  town? T _his is my home! **Not yours!**_ ”

Nico had lost track of anything else outside of Octavian’s face. He wanted to smash it in with a fist. So when the god’s expression unexpectedly twisted in pain and he cried out, he didn’t understand why.

Suddenly the world around him was moving again, arms were around his waist, pulling him against Grace’s broad chest as Levesque stepped in close, half shielding him.

He nearly dropped the bakery box.

Because...

Because it was impossible…

The hellhound was biting Octavian.

He was abruptly painfully cold, the only warmth in his skin where Grace’s body pressed against his.

Golden ichor dripped around gleaming fangs sunk into the hand of the god of the underworld.

He struck the hound with his free hand, sending it flying until it hit a building.

The concrete split.

Octavian glared before disappearing.


	137. Cat's Out of the Bag

“Nico! NICO!”

“Nico can you hear me? Nico.”

Levesque was crouched in front of him, golden eyes wide and even with his. She was holding the box with his mother’s cake.

Behind him, Grace’s voice was a low stream of words, “Nico, you’re okay. You’re safe.”

He was more angry than scared.  _For once._

But confusion was definitely filtering in.

“My mom and Reyna?”

“They’re fine,” Grace assured. “Frank was watching the house, and he turned the hellhounds away.”

Levesque frowned.

“Is the hound okay?”

Levesque’s face contorted briefly, “The hound?”

“We need to make sure you’re okay first,” Grace’s voice was still soft.

“Just cold.” Nico shifted in his arms, “It attacked a god. I think… I think it was helping me.”

“It would,” Levesque massaged his hand, lifting it up to make sure he could see what she did. “Where did you get this ring, Nico?”

“Uh.”

“Or is the better question, when?”

“Hazel,” Grace’s voice was a warning.

“You want to know too.”

“It’s just a ring.”

“It’s Hades’ ring. It’s the heir to the Underworld’s ring.” She ran a finger over the surface of it, eyes darting between it and Nico, “And it still holds power.”


	138. Who Knew

He did not want to have this conversation.

And he was cold.

He turned in Grace’s arms, sidling into his warmth, “It’s just a ring.”

Grace curled around him more, his hold gentle, “Nico.”

“Nothing like this should still have power, but this does.” Levesque let out a shaky breath, “A lot of it.”

“It was gift, over a decade ago.”

She pushed, “From who?”

“My mom.”

“I think we need to talk to her—“

“No.” “No.”

Nico blinked up at Grace in surprise, shocked at his support in this.

“We both know that his mother is mortal, Hazel. There’s nothing to be gained by stressing her or Nico by dragging her into this.”

Golden eyes narrowed, clearly suspicious.

“I already asked her about it anyways,” Nico groused. “It just came from some antique collection. She doesn’t know anything about it being a godly artifact.”

“But you did.”

“Fai recognized it.”

Levesque’s voice could have frozen water, “Since when?”

Nico shrunk away from her anger, “I want to check on the hellhound.”

Grace helped him back to his feet, ignoring Levesque’s scowl.

The giant hound was curled up beneath the dent in the concrete, whimpering almost too low to hear.


	139. Whimper

The hellhound’s red eyes shot wide as they approached.

“Hey there,” Nico stepped forward, carefully reaching a hand out. The ring on his finger seemed to exude cold.

The hellhound whimpered, but stretched its nose out, sniffing cautiously at his fingers. The creature was huge and thickly built. Nearly as tall as a horse standing up, but Nico just felt the need to protect it right now. A dark tongue shot out, licking his fingers, and its tail thumped slowly against the ground.

“Yeah, big guy, I like you too.” He looked up to Grace, feeling useless, “Is he going to be okay?”

Grace knelt next to him, looking the hound over, “I’m not sure. I was never much of an expert on hellhounds.”

The hound whimpered more loudly, and Levesque pulled him back, “I know this one is going to be scared of both of us. Use your head, Jay.”

“What can we do then?”

Levesque rubbed her temple, as if dealing with Nico’s puppy eyes was the worst thing that had happened today, “We call Fai in. He’s good with animals, and can heal it.”

Grace cocked an eyebrow, “You’re sure?”

“He’s already in the area, isn’t he?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads up, I'll be taking a hiatus for DragonCon starting on Wednesday. It'll be at least a week off.


	140. Puppy

"I don't understand why this one helped you," Fai pulled his hands away slowly as the hellhound got to its feet and immediately sidled up next to Nico. "The ones at the first attack didn't, right?"

Nico shook his head, scratching the gigantic hound behind the ears. The hound chuffed, nudging a wet nose against his face.  _It was kind of cute, once you got used to it._

"One of Mrs. O'Leary's descendants maybe," Grace suggested.

 "No. That entire bloodline is in my care," Levesque stepped in closer, examining the hound. It growled, making her frown deepen. “It’s the ring.”

“It is not,” Nico argued reflexively. He was still cold, but he didn’t want to take the ring off -- just in case she was right.

“The ring didn’t have that much power before.” Fai winced as Levesque and Grace both turned to him, “I would have told you about it if it had been more than just an old memento. It wasn’t.”

“Claims the man who wasn’t going to tell us the ring had cropped up at all,” Levesque scoffed.

“Hazel, I was trying to—“

“Don’t even start with me.”

Grace intervened, “Then it’s Nico? The ring’s just a conduit?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I'm officially on hiatus for DragonCon. Depending on if I get any writing done on vacation, it may be a little longer than the con before I update again. I've used up most of my buffer.


	141. Fear Leads to Anger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay. Okay. I'm back. Con crud more or less defeated. Let's start this monster back up.

“Demigod powers don’t carry through reincarnation like that,” Levesque rubbed her arms as if Nico’s chill was affecting her. “It shouldn’t work like that.”

“Things don’t work the same as they used to before,” Fai spoke carefully. “Maybe it can now.”

“Maybe you just didn’t notice the ring still held power,” She retorted.

“I’m not an idiot.”

Grace sighed, moving closer to Nico, watching the hound carefully, “It’s your power. What do you think happened?”

“I don’t know. I just,” Nico slumped back against Grace, soaking up warmth. “I don’t know.”

Grace curled around him a little, as if he understood what Nico was doing, “You just what?”

“I was really angry. More angry than sacred this time.” He shook his head as the hound whined and nuzzled his hand, “As if that matters.”

The three gods exchanged significant looks.

“It matters.”

Nico looked up sharply at Fai, while Grace tightened his hold.

“When a demigod is first manifesting powers, it comes more easily when they’re angry.”

“When our powers turned towards the godly,” Levesque spoke slowly, carefully. “It was hard to tell anything was different until we lost our temper and did more than we should’ve been capable of.”


	142. Claim

Nico forced an awkward chuckle, looking between Fai and Levesque, who suddenly seemed inclined to set aside their bickering, “What are you saying?”

“Nico,” Levesque was clearly trying to be soothing. _It wasn’t helping._ “You caused a hellhound to turn against the god of the Underworld.”

“They’re big dogs. Hasn’t that happened before?”

“There was one. Sort of,” Fai amended. “Mrs. O’Leary was loyal to Daedalus and a couple of demigods, but that was after years of building a relationship. And that loyalty never superseded obeying Hades. She couldn’t.”

Nico looked down at the hellhound, its head butted against his stomach as if he were its favorite person in the world. A hound he had never encountered before today. He massaged one giant doggy ear contemplatively, “You’re saying this shouldn’t be possible.”

“Not unless you were the god of the Underworld.”

“Or had a viable claim to the throne.”

He felt more than heard Grace swallow hard, his fingers flexing where they made contact.

“Which is obviously _not_ the case,” Nico added in a hopeful tone.

“I’m not sure we can say that,” Levesque’s slow cadence wasn’t really helping matters.

“I’m mortal. I **_can’t_** be the god of the Underworld!”


	143. Changing

“The rules changed when we came to power,” Fai was looking at Grace now, not him. “Perhaps they are still changing.”

“Or are changing again,” Grace finally spoke.  “I am not certain how to know. I--”

“You need a moment,” Fai’s voice was sympathetic.

“For what?” Levesque practically growled, “If Nico can take over the Underworld, we don’t have to lose him again, and we get rid of that snake, Octavian. Win, win.”

“Hazel,” Fai’s voice was tired.

“He never deserved my father’s throne.”

“No,” Grace’s voice was soft. It should have been nearly inaudible, but Levesque and Fai turned to it as if he had shouted. “I have never thought Octavian worthy of the Underworld, but he has it. Even though...”

There was a long silence that the hound whined into.

“Others worked for that position but could not have it.” He started to loosen his grip by just a fraction, and Nico found his hand going to cover Grace’s. The warm hand under his own trembled. “We do not know what risks are involved if we push at this. What consequences await.”

“Nico becomes a god,” Levesque retorted. “Like he always should have been.”

“We don’t know that.”


	144. Hesitate

“What else could it be?!”

Grace flinched, but stood firm, “What about the risks to everyone if the balance of power in the Underworld is upset? Who is put at risk if we pursue this? What about what Nico wants? What would that be asking him to sacrifice? What if he challenges Octavian and fails?”

Nico looked up at him, at blue eyes that flashed with power even as the hand in his, hidden behind the hellhound’s bulk, continued to tremble.

“I won’t lose my brother again, Jason Grace.”

“I won’t let anyone risk Nico’s life for a rash decision,” He looked down to meet Nico’s eyes again finally. “Not even if it’s  _your_ rash decision. I only just found you.”

Nico bit his lip, and nodded. Grace didn’t want him to decide anything right now. Grace might be just as freaked out as he was at the moment.  _That was actually... strangely comforting._

"I just want to get home right now."

"I think that's a good idea," Grace's fingers intertwined with his. "May I escort you?"

His family wasn't supposed to know Grace was here. He definitely didn't want them to know what had just happened. But still, "Yes."


	145. Request

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double-length chapter today. Enjoy.

He stopped the hovercar a couple of blocks away from the Moretti home. Grace looked over to Nico, feet up in his seat, eyes glued to the hellhound curled up to take over the entire backseat of the vehicle.

This entire week had been unexpected. Octavian not appearing until the day before the Solstice. Meeting Bianca Di Angelo. Finding out a younger Nico had recalled his past life. Watching Nico invoke power like he hadn’t since the war against Gaea. Probably more than then, really. Turning a hellhound’s loyalties against the current god of the Underworld was no demigod-level feat.

He spoke gently, since Nico didn’t seem to have registered the stop, “What do you want to do?”

Nico turned slowly, blinking up at him, “What?”

“We’re almost to your Mother’s home.”

“Oh,” He looked around now, dark eyes wide and lost. “I-- uh.”

“Let me make a suggestion,” He reached over, carefully taking Nico’s too cold hand in his. It was a heartbreakingly familiar sensation, but one that did not belong to Nico Moretti. “You order the hound to go with me. He’s quite large, and I doubt housebroken. I can take care of him for the time being. You take the car the rest of the way home, and enjoy your visit with your family, knowing that Hazel, Frank, and I are on guard against Octavian approaching you.”

Nico bit his lower lip, eyes looking down the road, to Jason, to the hound, and then back again to Jason, “You don’t mind looking after him?”

He squeezed Nico’s hand, “Not at all.”

Nico looked down their joined hands, taking a couple of deep breaths as he considered something, “Walk me to the door?”

That was unexpected. It was also a question instead of a demand; he could say no. He didn’t know how Bianca, Gina, would respond to him openly walking up to the house with Nico. She probably wouldn’t expose their earlier meeting given she didn’t want Reyna or Nico to know about her past life. Reyna would certainly be unhappy to learn he was here. On the other hand, Nico wanted him to. Something traumatizing for both of them had just happened, and Nico wanted him to stay close for a little longer. That was a hard request to deny.

“If you want me to.”

Nico nodded, and he continued their way to the Moretti house.


	146. Meet the Parent

Gina Moretti opened the door as Jason’s foot touched the first step leading to the front porch. Her eyes, dark as Nico’s, tracked over the two men, raking up and down Nico multiple times before locking gazes with Jason.

“What. Happened.”

“Nothing Mom,” Nico tried to cover lamely. “This is…”

“Jason,” He introduced himself brightly, as if they hadn’t been talking in private barely a day ago.

Bianca— Gina didn’t miss a beat, “Nico’s new boyfriend. Please come in.”

He felt Nico tense in reflex hesitation before his fingers tightened on Jason’s arm, and he pulled him forward with him, into the Moretti home.

Jason followed, unresisting, eyes tracking Nico’s unease cautiously.

Gina’s voice was suspicious as she closed the door, “That your dog?”

“Our dog,” Jason smiled warmly.

Gina raised a too knowing eyebrow, but didn’t push, “Cute.”

“He’s sweet,” Nico said defensively.

“Dogs are a big commitment,” Gina’s voice was placating. “When did you get him?”

“What are **_you_** doing here,” They all turned to see Reyna coming down the stairs.

“Blessed Solstice, Reyna,” Jason responded politely.

“Jason is joining us for dinner, My Sparrow,” Gina smiled. “Could you set another place at the table?”

“Mama!”

“Reyna.”

“Fine!”

 


	147. Shaken

He made it through dinner with the Morettis without incident. They managed to have polite small talk. Interacting with his family helped Nico to calm and re-center himself. It helped calm Jason, seeing Nico behaving more like himself, but he still felt shaken. Something he didn’t quite have a handle on had been abruptly uprooted.

The hellhound obediently remained on the front lawn, having situated itself in the shadows between pomegranate trees that grew thick and low to the ground.

Of course Bianca Di Angelo’s reincarnation kept pomegranate trees. He had a feeling it was something she had a sense of humor about.

Dinner ended and he made polite excuses about needing to leave. He couldn’t stay. He needed to get away for a few moments. To think. To breathe. To process.

Nico escorted him back to the front, and after a few quiet words to the hellhound, returned to stand in front of Jason, “Are you going to be watching tonight?”

His heart clenched, knowing he needed to deny Nico this, “Hazel will. I don’t expect Octavian will move again so soon, and I need to get the hound situated tonight. I will come if anything happens.”

“Promise?”

“Always.”


	148. This Kiss

Nico reached up, pulling Jason down for a kiss he hadn’t expected after the jarring events of the day. Nico’s skin was still too cold, a side effect of the power he’d wielded and the ring he wore.

_He wanted to kiss Nico._

_He’d been wanting this._

_Why was he having to remind himself that he wanted this as Nico’s lips pressed against his?_

_It was just earlier than he’d expected._

His fingers brushed over Nico’s cheek and into his hair, noticing the man’s shiver as his warmth contrasted the new chill to his skin.

He pressed forward into the kiss.

_This was Nico. This was the man he loved, he was just rattled by the past two days._

His hand slipped over Nico’s, caressing his skin, massaging the cold digits, and encountered the ring.

_The long lost Hades ring. It felt strange on Nico’s hand. Foreign after all this time._

He hadn’t even registered what he was doing until the ring was in the palm of his hand instead of on Nico’s finger, and his arm snaked around Nico’s waist as his skin began to warm again. Nico pressed closer, hands gripping Jason’s shirt.

_**This** felt like Nico Moretti._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those keeping count since the Kiss-Me-And-I'll-Tell-You flower story, here's the tally up of exchanged kisses until lips.
> 
> \--First Kiss Past Story (ch76)--  
> From Jason Grace to Nico Di Angelo:  
> 1\. Hand. 2. Forehead. 3. Cheek. 4. Cheek. 5. Corner of his mouth.  
> From Nico Di Angelo to Jason Grace:  
> 1\. Lips.
> 
> \--Build Up Kisses in Current Timeline--  
> From Jason Grace to Nico Moretti:  
> 1\. Forehead (ch12) 2. Hand (ch59) 3. Cheek (ch72) 4. Cheek (ch107)  
> From Nico Moretti to Jason Grace:  
> 1\. Cheek (ch71) 2. Hand (ch110) 3. Temple (ch129) 4. Lips (ch148)
> 
> Damn. Do I get to count this as slow burn?


	149. Moretti

_This is Nico Moretti._

_And that matters._

Nico pulled away for a breath, and Jason rested their foreheads together, looking into dark brown eyes while feeling his stomach churn.

_Too much had happened too quickly._

_He was confused. He loved Nico Di Angelo. Always would. But the prospect of losing Nico Moretti, of the man in his arms right now fading away into nonexistence without warning, had frightened him._

He’d repeated the words over and over again, beginning as a simple and mostly hollow reassurance. A Nico Moretti who never remembered his past was enough as he was. Somewhere along the line, it had begun to matter that Nico Moretti, as he was, lived. And Jason wasn’t sure what happened if Moretti became Di Angelo so strongly that he reclaimed the underworld from Octavian.

“Grace. My ring--”

“Nico,” he breathed the word out heavily, crashing his lips back over any protest.

When they parted again, Nico’s cheeks were flushed an attractive shade of red, and Jason couldn’t help the small smile it brought to his lips.

“Grace,” He paused, as if waiting for Jason to repeat his prior interruption, continuing only when he didn’t. “I want my ring back.”


	150. Okay

“Of course.”

Nico arched an eyebrow uncertainly, “Are  ** _you_**  okay?”

“Of course I am,” He released Nico and deposited the ring into his waiting hand.

“Grace,” Nico dragged his name out.

“I will be fine,” He ran fingers through Nico’s dark curls again. “Don’t worry about it.”

Nico shook his head, “No. This doesn’t work that way. Boyfriend. I worry about you. I notice when you  ** _need_** to be worried about.”

Jason’s eyebrows knit, and he bit his bottom lip pensively.

Nico ventured, “You don’t want me to wear the ring.”

“I did not say that.”

“You took it off me the first chance you got once I’d calmed down. Why?”

“It is unfair of me.”

“Because I’m not him.” Hurt flickered across Nico’s eyes before he clamped down on the reaction, “Or not enough of him right now.”

“No,” His words jumped out before Nico had finished the sentence, and he wrapped one hand around Nico’s, closing both their fingers over the ring. “No. The side effects. They worry me. The cold skin… It is not you.”

“Not me?” Nico looked at their hands, “The stories said Di Angelo...”

“Not Nico Moretti.” 

Jason looked away before Nico could process that.


	151. Uneasy

“Not…” Nico’s voice trailed off, and Jason tried not to flinch when he pulled his hand away.

_I know I’m being contradictory. I know this doesn’t make sense. All of my approach to him as been based in the fact that he is My Nico reborn, to balk when that part of him rises to the surface..._

“It is as Frank said. I need time to process what happened today. I’m sorry. It’s not fair of--”

“Jason,” His eyes shot back to Nico’s as the man cut him off. “That’s not something to apologize for.”

Jason swallowed hard, letting his eyelids lower, ashamed. This was not the time to rejoice at Nico calling him by name, “You may be coming into more of yourself. I should not be uneasy about that.”

“I’m uneasy about it!” Nico laughed, and wrapped his arms around Jason’s waist. His cheek was warm against Jason’s shoulder, and the ring wasn’t in his hand. “It’s scary. I’m not supposed to be able to do anything like that, and I didn’t even know I  ** _was_**  doing anything! It wasn’t like becoming Di Angelo, I was just mad and scared something was going to happen to my family.”


	152. Talking

Nico chuckled, head pressed against Jason’s chest, “It was all just me.”

Jason wrapped his arms around Nico, squeezing tightly, “Thank you.”

“We’re dating, Jason. We’re supposed to talk about stuff that makes us uneasy.” He chuckled again, burrowing closer in Jason’s arms, “Do you have any idea how happy it makes me that you’re upset because you’re worried that I’m losing myself to a past life?"

“That makes you happy?”

“Not the you being upset part, but that you want me? As I am?” Nico moved, looking up to meet his eyes, “Of course that makes me happy.”

“I am torn,” Jason admitted.

“I’d be surprised if you weren’t.” Nico responded seriously, “This has gotta be weird for you. I don’t mind saying going from shock about the hound to Levesque talking about me fighting Octavian for the Underworld freaked me out.”

“She should not have voiced that idea in front of you. Circumstances were already stressful enough.”

“You demanding that nobody was deciding anything about it then and there was the only thing that kept me from screaming.” Nico sighed, “Is that what all this means, that I’m becoming a god? Or have the potential to be one?”


	153. Naming

“Don’t think about that tonight.” Jason smoothed down his hair, pressing a kiss there, “Just rest. It can wait a bit.”

“How long is ‘a bit’?”

“ ** _That_**  we will have to figure out together.” Jason nuzzled a little closer, “But I will not let anyone force you into something you do not want.”

Nico laughed at that, “So long as I don’t leave you, right?”

“I am admittedly selfish and unfair on that count.”

“Well, at least that’s not a problem right now.”  He hummed, “So  _ **our**_ dog, huh?”

“She’ll hardly fit in your apartment.”

“True enough. Have a name in mind?”

“I doubt she’d let me name her, even if I had one in mind.”

“My call then.” Nico shifted, looking at the hellhound hiding underneath the pomegranates. “I’m guessing Cerberus is taken.”

“As far as I know, Cerberus still lives.”

“How about Tempest?”

Jason felt like he’d been punched in the gut, “Why Tempest?”

“She has a white undercoat. I noticed when she was being cuddly.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. Kind of becomes a stormy color when you’re scratching her. I thought it’d be fitting.” Nico’s voice was concerned, “You don’t like it?”

“I had a horse named that once.”


	154. Tempest

Jason watched warily as the hellhound settled into a nest of pillows in one of his open air rooms, but only after sniffing around every edge of the room and whimpering over the balcony. Tempest looked up at him with big, mournful red eyes, clearly dissatisfied with being separated from Nico. It didn’t seem like the hound was going to run off though. Just whine like an abandoned puppy.

“Tempest,” He murmured gently, still trying to wrap his head around Nico’s name choice. “You’ll see Nico again soon. It’s fine.”

The hound shot him a hopeful look, slowly thumping her tail against the thick pillows in a steady rhythm.

Jason massaged his temple.

_How had it even come to this? Did Octavian know why this had happened? Was it why he had been so opposed to Nico’s involvement with any of them? Why he was so violent in response to Nico’s presence?_

_With this latest incident, would he escalate?_

_If Nico did take the position Octavian now held, what happened to Octavian? He didn’t like Octavian, but he didn’t want him destroyed either. For all the antagonism, he’d survived the centuries with them. There was a kind of family there._


	155. Visitors

Jason woke to someone yelling through his home. He listened for a moment, then groaned, rolling over into a pillow to wallow for a moment before forcing himself to get up and greet the intrusion.

“Whoa! _What in Tartarus!?_ ”

“Jason!”

He sighed, getting to his feet as barking started to echo through the halls. He found Leo and Piper in the room he’d left Tempest in. Tempest was crouched dangerously, tail between her legs, hackles raised, alternating between growling and barking. Leo’s fists were clenched, dancing with precautionary fire while Piper stood close to him, looking concerned.

“Morning Leo. Pipes.”

Leo’s voice was tense, not looking away from Tempest, “Are you okay!?”

Piper seemed to note his lack of alarm, “There is a  ** _hellhound_** in your sitting room, Jason.”

“Yes, her name is Tempest, and I’m looking after her.” He ran a hand through his hair and yawned, “Please don’t burn the dog, Leo.”

Leo doused the flames, but Tempest still growled, backing up nervously over the minefield of pillows, “You’re  ** _‘looking after’_**  a hellhound?”

“Octavian said there’d been an attack on him, supported by you,” Piper said carefully.

“Obviously a lie, so we came to check on you, Sparky.”


	156. News

Jason sighed, sitting down heavily on the pillows and clucking his tongue at Tempest until the hound settled into a sitting position. She wasn't happy, but she wasn't growling at his best friends anymore either, so he'd take the compromise.

"You should sit down," He prefaced carefully. With all the excitement and focus on ingratiating himself into Nico's life, he hadn't updated his best friends on current events. With near eternity laid out before them it wasn’t strange to go a couple of months without talking, but-- Now they needed to know everything he did. Together, they were the top tier gods, and he should have kept them in the loop.

Leo bounced into a comfy spot, ignoring the nervous hellhound while Piper sat gracefully next to him, bumping their shoulders together, "What's going on, Jaybird?"

"I'm not sure where to start," He admitted.

"Let's start with the most obvious," Leo smirked. "Was Octavian attacked?"

“Yes.” He gestured with his chin, “By Tempest. In defense of a mortal.”

“Octavian was threatening a mortal I assume he didn’t have good cause to.” Piper grumbled, “Which of course he didn’t mention to anyone.”

“Whether or not Octavian had cause might be debatable.”

“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Leo groaned loudly and flopped back on a pillow, causing Tempest to bark and stand up briefly, before resettling in a spot further away from the three gods. “What possible excuse does the God of the Underworld have to be going after some mortal?”

Piper tutted, “Could be an escaped soul or something. Remember Daedalus and Mrs. O’Leary?”

“It like that?” Leo perked up with interest. “If it’s another mechanical genius like Daedalus--”

“No. It’s not like that.” Jason shook his head, “I need to-- I should have told both of you earlier, but--”

“Jason,” Piper placed a hand over his. “Whatever it is, we’re not going to be mad at you.”

“Yeah man, we’ve been the unstoppable trio for centuries. It’s all good. Just spit it out!”

“Nico has been reborn,” Jason couldn’t look up at them. “Octavian was attacking Nico.”

The silence was oppressive.

Piper spoke up first, her voice cautious, “Does he remember?”

Jason shook his head slowly.

Leo frowned, “Does Hazel know?”

“Yes,” He was surprised by the thickness of his own voice. “I told her as soon as I found him, but after that I-- I couldn’t tear myself away.”


	157. Updated

He spent a long time explaining things to Leo and Piper. Everything. Reyna. Bianca. The ring. Nico’s childhood recollections now lost to time. His concerns regarding Moretti versus Di Angelo. They asked questions, and he answered as best he could.

They had promised themselves to never be like their parents, jockeying for power over each other. They shared everything and tried to find solutions together. Honesty was vital between the three of them.

Piper was hugging him by the end of the talk, and Leo was half draped over his lap, complaining he was too tired to sit up for extended periods of time, but just as tactile in his desire to comfort as Piper.

“We’ll have to wait and see I think,” Leo looked meaningfully at Tempest. “Good Doggy here could be a one off, like a glitch in the Matrix, but if Nico 2.0 really has the ability to take over the Underworld, it’s going to take more time for that to manifest.”

“I wish we knew what information Octavian’s acting on,” Piper sighed, petting Jason’s hair. “Not that he’d tell us.”

“I can’t believe he went to petition you against me.”

“I can,” Leo snorted. “Jerk.”


	158. Leo

"Fai! My man!"

Nico's head jerked up to look at the scrawny man bouncing across the solarium garden to join he and Fai at the table. _No one ever approached the gods he'd befriended around DC first. No one knew them to do so. Except the other gods. And he hadn't met any new gods since Octavian._

He reflexively shrunk back from the newcomer, fingers immediately going to the Hades ring.

"Leo?" Fai laughed heartily, standing up to sweep the smaller man into a bear hug. "I thought you were in Portugal!"

"Got back a couple of weeks ago! I heard half the pantheon's hanging out around DC these days," He looked pointedly at Nico, his smile bright and friendly. "Figured maybe it was time I met the reason why."

Fai seemed okay with the guy, but Nico couldn't shake his nervousness. Octavian had made him paranoid.

"Leo, meet Nico Moretti, environmental science student. Nico, this is Leo Valdez, the god of fire, the forge, and invention."

Leo quirked an eyebrow inquisitively, “Environmental science?”

“Biochem actually, with a focus on solarium plant genetics.”

Leo’s smile quirked even more, smothering a snort, “Growing plants.”

Nico blushed, “Long term food supply solutions.”


	159. 2.0

Fai shook his head, but smiled, “Leo, please.”

Valdez sat down across from Nico, face still contorted with restrained humor, “Sorry. I shouldn’t laugh, but the idea of Di Angelo’s reincarnation working with plants is pretty hilarious.”

Nico blinked at him, “Why? I mean, I get that he was a Hades demigod, but I don’t see why that means he wouldn’t like plants. Demeter and Persephone were involved with the Underworld.”

Leo looked shocked for a moment then chuckled while shaking his head, “Wow. You really don’t remember anything. It’s kind of amazing. I mean,  ** _look_**  at you!”

Nico looked away, trying not to pout, “I know. I know. I look a lot like him.”

“Naw,” Leo’s voice was warm. “Forget that. It’s amazing that you’ve really gotten to start over without those hang ups. It’s great. I’m happy for you.”

Nico looked back warily, “So why is working with plants hilarious?”

“Persephone turned Di Angelo  ** _into plants_**  a couple of times when she was angry. Traumatized him a bit. Listen,” Leo straightened, his humor draining away. “It took Nico 1.0 and me a long time to get on good terms. I don’t want to start wrong with you.”


	160. Nicknames

Before Nico knew it, he was laughing with Valdez-- Leo. “No one uses 1.0 and 2.0 anymore. It’s archaic.”

“I’m archaic,” Leo announced jovially. “And you are definitely 2.0. I mean, I’ve matured a lot, but you’re definitely the new and improved version.”

Nico laughed again, cheeks flushing, “I think you’re the first one to call me improved.”

He hummed, still chuckling, “Maybe a few bugs to work out, but you’re still only human. And buddy, Sparky definitely means improved when he says things like you’re everything he’d wished Death Breath could have had going for him.”

Fai groaned, slapping a hand to his forehead.

“‘Death Breath?’”

Leo leaned back in his chair wincing, “Ignore that. Old nicknames die hard.”

“You called Di Angelo… ‘Death Breath’?”

“We were teenagers. I was an ass, he was a sulky punk, and neither of us knew about each other’s trauma.” Leo’s smile was both embarrassed and fond, “We got older, and childish mean nicknames somehow became nostalgic.”

“Oh.”

“Things like that are complicated, but decades of friendship make for inside jokes and wear away sharp edges.”

“What did he call you?”

“Santa’s Elf.”

“‘Santa?’”

“Lost traditions,” Leo grinned. “Definitely insulting.”


	161. Chapter 161

He and Jason had been on a few dates since he’d returned to DC from the Solstice break, Octavian hadn’t reappeared, and meeting Leo had been far less stressful than he might have imagined meeting one of the big three gods to be. The guy was funny and laid back. He didn’t seem god-like at all. He was also much more relaxed about discussing Di Angelo around him, continuing to use the Nico 1.0 and 2.0 nicknames. He was inadvertently learning more about Di Angelo from Leo than the people that had been closest to him.

It was the second weekend after the university restarted classes and he was finally going to visit Jason’s home on Olympus to see where Tempest was living. The hellhound had continued being loyal and sweet to him, wary of everyone else, and shown no desire to return to the Underworld.

Levesque stepped through a huge archway, leading Nico into a room filled with draperies, thick piles of pillows, and an excited hellhound bounding towards him.

“I’ve got to join a meeting. Are you going to be okay on your own for a bit?”

Nico indulged Tempest’s demands for scritches, “I’ll be fine.”


	162. New Meeting

Everything was quiet as he walked around the gigantic room, looking out the open balconies onto a starscape. Tempest followed at his heels, chuffing at the pillows and rugs, content with being close to him.

He didn’t notice when a woman joined him in the room until she spoke up, voice soft, “It’s a beautiful view, isn’t it?”

He jumped in surprise, but Tempest seemed unconcerned, sniffing at her then going back to investigating the tassels on a red pillow.

“Uh, yeah. Gorgeous.”

She was too. He wasn’t attracted to many women, but she was beautiful in the same way the starscape was, just objective fact. Given where they were, she had to be either a god or demigod.

“Hi.” He ran a hand through his hair, nervous, “I’m Nico Moretti, and this is Tempest.”

“We’ve met. I’m in and out of Jason’s pavilions a lot, so Tempest and I are slowly becoming friends.” Her laugh was a bell-like sound, and she clucked at the Tempest invitingly, only to be ignored, “I think.”

“You call him Jason.”

Her eyes crinkled at the edges and shifted colors, “We’ve been friends a very long time.”

Nico nodded, and looked away nervously, "Oh."


	163. Piper

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As if y'all hadn't already figured this out.

“You don’t need to be so nervous.” She plopped down on a set of pillows then patted another next to her, “Sit with me.”

That was easy for her to say. She still hadn’t introduced herself. Maybe she was a demigod though, if she wasn’t in the meeting Levesque had gone to. Still, he sat next to her obediently, Tempest curling up beside him, laying her head on Nico’s lap.

“So you and Jason, yes?”

“Yeah.”

She laughed again, “I promise I don’t bite. I just really wanted to meet you.”

“While the gods are busy.”

“Yes,” She huffed. “I was hoping one on one would create less pressure for you. Given the situation, I worried you might find me more intimidating than the others.”

Nico curled closer to Tempest warily, “I don’t even know who you are.”

“I know.” She exhaled a long slow breath, interlacing her fingers in her lap and looking at them for a long moment before returning her gaze to Nico. “I am Piper McLean.”

He blinked at her, uncomprehending.

“The goddess of love, beauty, and family.”

He felt his eyes widen. He’d been re-reading the stories. _He’d heard of her. Of course he had._


	164. Past

“You dated Jason, before **_He_ ** did.” Nico swallowed hard, knowing his voice was shaking. “You’re the queen of the gods, and he was yours first. I—”

“Please,” She placed a hand over his, her voice gentle. “It’s not like that at all. Jason is my dear friend, and so was Nico Di Angelo. You need not fear anything like that from me.”

“You’re not just saying that because of Jason?”

She smiled warmly, “No. Would you hate me to know that he and I have been together at points in the interim?”

He shook his head.

“It is the same for me. I love Jason, but it is not the same sort of love that Nico Di Angelo felt for him.” She eyed him carefully, “And it is not the same sort of love that you are growing into towards him.”

He busied his fingers with scratching Tempest’s ears, “You can see that?”

“I am the goddess of love,” She chuckled. “Which is apparently the least of the things I should have worried about intimidating you. Nico and I settled any concerns about Jason and I’s brief romance so long ago I hardly thought it would be an issue now.”


	165. Love

“So, you can see how I feel about Jason,” Nico looked away, leaning over Tempest’s head as if the hound’s warmth alone could make this easier. “Can you see how he feels about me?”

“Yes,” She shifted on the pillows, laying back against them instead of looking at Nico directly. “But it would be quite unfair of me to tell you about that.”

“Right.” He huffed, eyes scanning the stars, “Can you tell me what I should do?”

“About what?”

Nico closed his eyes, “Any of it I guess, but you’re the goddess of love. Am I really in love with him, or is it just godly magic, or Di Angelo’s ghost, or whatever else is going on here.”

“Nico…”

“Nico 2.0,” He clarified, adopting Leo’s nickname. “I’m not **_Him_** , you know? I’m _**me**_.”

“You both are and aren't.” Piper sighed, “You may not have his memories, but you are unmistakably the same soul, Nico Moretti. Jason isn’t wrong there.”

He groaned.

“Even if I gave you the answer, it won’t matter until you make the decision yourself. Let things take their course. _Enjoy the journey._ ”

“And Octavian?”

Her voice was worried, “We don’t know what he’s about yet.”


	166. A Plan

“I’m still against it,” He heard Jason in the hall before he saw him.

A relaxed laugh followed the grouchy objection, “But you’re not forbidding it, because you know we’re right. It’s the best option.”

“For now,” Leo interjected placatingly, his arm slung around Jason’s shoulder as three of them came around the corner and into the room. “You don’t need to press him like that, Percy.”

“It’s more fun this wa— Hey Nico! You’re here!”

Nico met the bright eyes of the sea god as he broke away from Jason and Leo, “Hello Jackson.”

He plopped down on the pillows near Nico and Piper, reaching out to demand a hug, “Call me Percy!”

“No, thank you,” Nico leaned back, just out of reach, eyes darting back to Jason and the concerned look on his face. “Hi Leo. Hi Jason.”

“2.0!” Leo’s voice was cheerful, making Nico smile reflexively. “All the way up on Olympus and everything!”

“Guess so.”

“I’m glad you came,” Jason’s gentle voice makes it sound like he expected otherwise.

Nico is on his feet, pulling Jason down by one shoulder so he can press a kiss to his cheek, “Of course I did. It’s you.”


	167. Necessary

Jackson huffed good naturedly, “Well, I guess that’s decided,  _ **again**_.”

“Percy,” Piper chided, but there was a laugh behind her words.

Nico allowed Jason to tuck him against his side with an arm around his waist, watching the conflicting expressions flicker over the god’s face, “So what is this ‘it’ you’ve been arguing about?”

Jason’s face scrunched uneasily, “I wouldn’t call it arguing…”

“I would,” Percy quipped.

Leo groaned, “Yeah, it was Sparky.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You were going to,” Piper smiled, and Jason huffed, pulling Nico closer. “So what was the verdict?”

Nico leaned into Jason’s embrace, “Verdict on what?”

“What to do about your powers, Dog Whisperer.” Leo sat near Jackson and Piper, looking up at Jason and Nico expectantly, “You need training.”

“Training for what?” Nico knew the answer, but he didn’t want to admit that.

“To make sure you can control, whatever this is,” Jason said gently.

Nico pulled away from him, staring at the other gods. He knew Jason was conflicted, “And to fight Octavian, right?”

“Preferably,” Jackson smirked.

“Maybe,” Leo sighed. “Not the point though. You’re developing powers, you need to train them for your safety and others. That’s the priority right now.”


	168. Teacher

“I guess you’re right,” Nico sighed. “As long as you understand I haven’t signed up to fight Octavian.”

“I’m more concerned with getting that message across to Octavian,” Piper sighed.

“Let me know how that goes!” Jackson laughed, “I’ll be your first teacher then.”

Nico glanced hurriedly between the sea god and Jason, “Him?”

“He’s a good teacher,” Jason admitted grudgingly.

“Jason’s better, usually, but he’d probably be too soft on you to accomplish anything,” Leo added. “And there’s something to be said for echoing the circle with Percy being first to teach you.”

“You were the first to teach Di Angelo?”

Jackson rubbed the back of his head and looked away with uneasily, “Sounds accurate.”

“Uh huh,” Jason’s raised eyebrow and half smirk answered Nico’s unasked question, and he laced their fingers together pulling Jason with him to a spot between Piper and Leo.

“Sounds accurate isn’t a yes,” Nico pressed, feeling oddly confident that Jason and Leo (and probably Piper) were in his corner.

Jackson grinned lazily, “You’ll find out at your first training session, won’t you?”

Nico looked at Jason. If he had to do this, he’d rather train with a god he was more comfortable with.


	169. Annabeth

Nico let himself whine a little bit, “It has to be him?”

_“HEY!”_

Leo laughed, “It’s for the best 2.0, I promise. He’s not so bad, really.”

Nico shot Jackson a theatrically mistrustful look and was rewarded by a warm chuckle from Jason, and the god pulling him closer to bury his face in Nico’s hair until he stopped laughing.

“I’m insulted,” Jackson sounded amused. “It’s as if no one thinks I’m reliable.”

“You’re as changeable as the seas, and we all know it far too well, Love,” A woman with dark golden hair walked into the room side by side with Levesque. She sat next to Jackson, ruffling his hair and smiling at his pout.

Levesque stared at Leo until he moved to make room for her next to Nico.

“By changeable you mean untrustworthy,” Jackson groused.

“I mean changeable, Percy. You’re reliable in your own way, but you’re also easily led by your whims and changes in the environment. It’s why the sea suits you so well.” Stormy grey eyes shifted to Nico finally, and he felt the weight of a god’s focus settle in, “I am Annabeth Chase. It is good to meet you Nico Moretti.”


	170. Intimidation

“You too,” Nico stared at the woman before him. _Annabeth Chase, the goddess of strategy, wisdom, and vengeance. She was also the paramour of the sea god, since before they had been gods, although the stories suggested they were by no means exclusive. Jackson’s own behavior said those stories weren’t inaccurate. He wasn’t sure how she’d react to Jackson flirting with him._

_Meeting her now, under the cold seriousness of her gaze, he didn’t know how he had ever thought she might have been the god that approached him at the cafe._

Her focus broke off as her attention changed to Jason, “I’m sorry we’re late, Hazel and I were catching up.”

“I asked you here for your thoughts on the situation,” Jason responded. “Your time otherwise is your own to choose.”

She laughed, finally breaking the serious atmosphere, “I suppose it’s just been a long time since I’ve been here outside a formal meeting. You know Percy didn’t tell me at all about Nico being reborn?”

“I was distracted!”

She raised an eyebrow at him, “Not with Nico, from what Hazel tells me.”

Jackson coughed and looked away, “You like Alexi.”

“I like sharing Alexi with you,” She smirked.


End file.
